Sonia makes aerial survey of Bihar floods

Samastipur, Aug 7: UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Union Home minister Sivraj Patil today made an aerial survey of the flood affected districts of North Bihar and talked to some of the victims to know the actual situation.

After witnessing the extent of damage of floods, which had marooned all the 19 districts of North Bihar rendering over 12 million people homeless besides claiming 87 lives and destroying property worth several hundreds crores of rupees, Ms Gandhi met some of the victims here and listened to their woes.

Accompanied by Chief minister Nitish Kumar, Railway minister Lalu Prasad and Union Steel, Chemicals and Fertiliser minister Ram Vilas Paswan, Ms Gandhi after landing at a local stadium at around 1550 hours, went straight to meet some of the flood vicitms, mostly women and inquired about the availability of relief materials.

While some of the women who had come to meet her from far off places and waited long, told her about the ferocity of floods. Many of them cried while narrating their woes as several of them had also lost their relatives in the natural calamity. Ms Gandhi, flanked by the Chief minister and the Railway minister, while consoling them promised every assistance to tide over their immediate sufferings.

Later she and her entourage left for Patna to hold an all party meeting to review the flood situation and ways to tackle the situation.

UNI