Several people blasted the Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, for losing his temper with media on Tuesday when questioned about his government’s inability to help people in the flood-ravaged state that has claimed the lives of 42 people so far.
Chief Minister Kumar was shown lashing out at reporters and local people after they criticised his administration for the slow pace of the rescue efforts in Bihar’s capital city of Patna, which has been declared the worst affected by floods.
"I am asking all of you is Patna the only city in the country affected by floods? Is no other city or part of the country affected by floods and natural calamity? There are floods everywhere, so why pick on Patna? What is happening in America?" he asked.
Describing the floods as a natural calamity, the Bihar Chief Minister said: “We are extending every possible relief to people affected by floods in the city.”
“We are doing everything we can. No one is sitting idle. This is a natural calamity magnified by climate change,” he added.
Earlier this week, the chief of India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), S.N. Pradhan, warned that the state of Bihar is facing a possible medical emergency as 13 of its 38 districts have been inundated by floodwaters.
Pradhan said the NDRF is in damage control mode in the state where life has come to a complete standstill. He said that seven NDRF teams have been deployed with 40 boats to carry out rescue operations in Patna city alone.
Many videos and pictures continue to surface on the internet that show the massive devastation caused by floods in the state.
A video of a woman breaking down in tears after being rescued from a flooded area of Patna has gone viral on social media.
In another video that has been making the rounds on the internet, a man is seen trying to attract the attention of the local authorities.
According to the Indian weather bureau, the southwest monsoon was set to end around 10 September but has continued across the Indian subcontinent, causing loss of life, livestock, crops and property. So far more than 140 people have died because of the floods.
The weather bureau authorities now say they expect the rains to continue until the middle of October.