EU gives Tk 90.6 lakh to help flood victims

The European Union is providing Tk 90.6 lakh (€100,000) to Bangladesh for an early anticipatory action to reduce the negative impacts of severe flooding on the most affected communities.

The aid will benefit over 3,300 families in some of the hardest hit areas in Kurigram, Gaibandha and Jamalpur districts, said a statement of the Asia and the Pacific chapter of the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations yesterday.

The funding is provided in response to severe flooding that submerged many parts of Bangladesh late last month.

The EU funding supports the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society in using reliable scientific forecast information and risk analysis to foresee the potential impact of the floods and to conduct early actions aimed at reducing human suffering, losses and damage.

"The aid includes evacuating the most vulnerable communities to safe shelters with their assets and livestock, providing unconditional cash grants, as well as providing first aid treatment," the statement said.

Heavy monsoon rainfall triggered extensive floods in northern and eastern areas of Bangladesh, causing extensive damage to homes and farmlands across the nation's vast northern regions.

Thousands of people have found themselves marooned or displaced. The flooding could affect up to a million households over the first days of July, the statement says.