PATNA, India, Sept 16 (AlertNet) - Authorities battling severe floods in east India&${esc.hash}39;s Bihar state say they have stopped airlifting food aid to affected areas because all those who were trapped by the floodwaters have been rescued.
More than four million people fled their homes when the Kosi river, which originates in Nepal, burst a dam last month and unleashed water downstream in Bihar state.
A report released on Monday by Bihar&${esc.hash}39;s disaster management department says a million people are still displaced. Of these, some 300,000 have been housed in overcrowded relief camps while the rest are staying with relatives, or camping along embankments and in railway stations. Some have left the region altogether in search of work.
Thousands of survivors across the affected region have complained about the quality of food aid. Some say not enough food is being distributed, others that it is stale and contaminated.
Officials in Saharsa district were forced to throw away pots of cooked food after thousands of villagers took to the streets in disgust that a pig had entered the kitchen and eaten some of the food.
"Are we worse than beasts?" they demanded of a local official who inspected the kitchen. "Should we now eat contaminated food to survive?" asked Suresh Rishideo of Kumarkhand.
Many flood victims have complained that influential locals and others have been stealing relief materials sent by charities.
Officials say the intensity and frequency of protests have grown despite their best efforts to deliver aid to all those in need.
Aid agencies fear that filthy conditions and a lack of drinking water are putting the survivors at risk of infections and water-borne diseases.
Despite repeated warnings to move from flood-hit areas to safety, state officials estimate that around 20,000 people have chosen to stay at home to protect their possessions and cattle.
Bihar&${esc.hash}39;s chief minister Nitish Kumar said the threat of further flooding would continue until mid-October.
"Please don&${esc.hash}39;t play with danger," he told villagers. "I again appeal you to rush for safer places without delay."
Officials said they were prepared to send food aid by boat to those remaining, but would not be responsible for their safety if the floods worsen.
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