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Hope for flood-affected families in India

First, an intense heatwave. Then heavy rain. Northern India has been hit by severe flooding, causing enormous destruction and up to 200 deaths. Erikshjälpen is providing assistance to affected households through the local partner organization EFICOR.

In July, monsoon rains swept across northern India. The period is expected to last until September and rainfall is extremely important for Indian agriculture. But with the rains come floods, and the consequences are often devastating, with deaths and communities completely destroyed.

This is the current situation in northern India. Here, the weather has become increasingly extreme in recent years and this year's monsoon rains came after a long and intense heatwave. The result was quickly catastrophic, with several landslides and severe flooding. The worst affected areas are those along India's major rivers, where people have been forced to flee their homes empty-handed and seek temporary shelter in makeshift tents.

People standing on the street in a disaster-hit area in northern India.

Support package for almost 600 households

Up to 200 deaths have been reported from six states, while destroyed houses, bridges and roads have devastated both smaller villages and larger communities. Erikshjälp's local partner organization EFICOR was quickly on the ground in the areas of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi to provide both emergency assistance and financial support to the affected households.

Erikshjälpen is contributing to an effort focused on families affected by flooding along the Yamuna River in East Delhi. Here, support packages with food, tools and shelter materials have been distributed to almost 600 households - mainly to vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, widows and single women. It is hoped that another 300 households in Delhi will receive relief packages in the coming weeks.

Hope of moving back home

Since EFICOR started the operation in mid-July, more than 1,700 households have received assistance in the form of support packages or financial support. Help that gives hope to the affected families. Hope to overcome all the challenges brought by the floods and hope to eventually move back to their homes. For EFICOR, work continues in the affected areas and the aim is to reach a total of 5,000 households in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.

Author: Johan Larsson