`1.8 million children affected in Assam floods`

Guwahati: Altogether 1.8 million children have been affected in the floods and struggling daily to meet their basic needs such as food, water, medicare and education during the past three months in Assam, as per an estimate of an internationally active NGO.

"Out of the total affected population of 4.89 million, the number of children was 1.8 million and many of them were affected twice," `Save the Children` Chief Executive Officer Thomas Chandy said after visiting some flood affected areas yesterday. In any emergency in any part of the world, children were the worst sufferers and they were unable to deal with the hardship caused by displacement, lack of food and clean water, he said. Disruption in schooling and their normal activity might lead to deep stress affecting their cognitive development progressively, he said. The third wave of flood was the worst in some parts of the state and affected children the most. The first round of flood affected around 2.7 million people in 27 districts in June-July. The September flood affected about 1.5 million people in the state. The London-headquartered NGO`s responses to the crisis included foodgrain support, safe drinking water, setting of child-friendly spaces where playing and learning takes place and cash assistance to families facing extreme financial hardship. The 95-year-old NGO also supplied tarpaulins for shelter, hygiene kits, medical support through trained medical practitioners among others and plans to reach out to around 35,000 children in 10,200 households in the districts of Barpeta, Nalbari and Morigaon in Lower Assam, he said.