URGENT RELIEF NEEDED – Eastern Province

The recent floods that have wreaked havoc on the Eastern Province has left in its wake much misery and suffering as many people have lost their provisions and sources of livelihood. This has particularly affected the Ampara and Batticaloa districts. Badly affected areas include Kalmunai, Sainthamaruthu, Maruthamunai and Nindavur as well as certain parts of Sammanthurai, Natpattimunai, and Pandiruppu.

The Muslim Women’s Research and Action Forum (MWRAF) which has been involved in urgent relief operations in the area said that most of the affected had been evacuated and put up in schools and other shelters as the water had risen to great heights in many areas. Although the waters were receding in some areas, much of the water was still stagnant giving rise to health problems as a result of water logging and contaminated water as a result of overflowing toilet pits.

Ms.Jezima Ismail, Founder, MWRAF, said that most of the affected were daily paid wage earners and had to be provided with food and other immediate needs till things get back to normal, which is however no easy task for her organization to achieve given that the damages to their movable and immovable properties including means of livelihood such as handlooms has yet to be assessed. She added that the affected people of the area were badly in need of dry rations, tea, sugar, powdered milk, bottled water, mosquito nets, mosquito coils and medical supplies.

Ms.Ismail explained that her organization had been instrumental in improving the livelihoods of people and developing the capacity of these communities ever since the Tsunami disaster and that they were therefore capable of standing on their own. What was needed now is to help them overcome this unfortunate situation and get them back on their feet at the earliest.

U.L.Badiuzzaman, the Secretary of the Kalmunai Disaster Relief Information Centre (KDRIC) said that although the incessant rains that plagued the area during the past several days had ceased, the water had shown little signs of receding due to drainage problems, so that most people here could not settle in their homes as yet. Many were in fact compelled to sleep over tables and other furniture or higher ground and were being plagued by mosquitoes that were breeding virulently due to the stagnant water that had accumulated over the past several days. He expressed his fears about a dengue epidemic if no immediate action was taken in this regard and identified mosquito nets as a very urgent need.

He also pointed out that although schools had started, many children could not attend school as their books had been destroyed. He therefore identified school exercise books as another priority to ensure that the education of these children was not neglected.

Contact Details:

MWRAF: [email protected]

Head Office: 2512846 / 4405902 / 077-3063516
Field Office (Kalmunai): 067-2229327 / 077-3017055

KDRIC : [email protected]

Chairman- U.L.M. Bazeer – 0777-247675

Secretary – U.L.Badiuzzaman – 0772-280636

Treasurer I.L.Samsudeen – 077-3669148