Action by Churches Together (ACT) Appeal - India West Bengal Floods - ASIN05 (Revision 1) Appeal Target: US$ 1,458,072 Geneva, 9 October 2000
Immediate relief measures have been taken up in the priority areas with distribution of food, shelter and clothing by ACT members Lutheran World Service (LWS) - India and Churches Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA). In order to include CASA's rehabilitation programme component, ACT Appeal ASIN05 issued on 29 September for US$ 1,106,623 is being re-issued as a Revised Appeal. As rehabilitation needs are equally important, CASA in this proposal seeks to address particular physical infrastructure needs to mitigate some of the disaster prone characteristics of the affected districts. The proposal thus comprises the following elements: Multipurpose flood/disaster shelters Drinking water tube wells For the sake of brevity, details of the original ASIN05 Appeal are not repeated in this revised document. Project Completion Date: 31 July 2001. Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested CASA LWS-India Unear-marked Target US$ Total Appeal Targets 494,314 * 963,758 -- 1,458,072 Less Received 99,797 97,000 15,000 211,797 Balance Requested 394,517 866,758 15,000 1,246,275 * Includes original Appeal Target US$ 142,865 + new Appeal Target US$ 351,449 Thor-Arne Prois ACT Coordinator REQUESTING ACT MEMBER INFORMATION Church's Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER & PARTNER INFORMATION The rehabilitation programme will be implemented directly by CASA, with the assistance of the Methodist Engineering Company and with the active participation of local churches, government agencies and partner organisations in the area is assured. CASA is registered as a Society under the Societies' Registration Act XXI of 1860. Its members consist of 24 Protestant and Orthodox Churches in India and CASA functions as the outreach arm of these Churches. As the Related Agency of the National Council of Churches in India, CASA is mandated to do relief work on behalf of all the Protestant Churches. CASA has a history of responding to emergencies and disasters since 1947. CASA's response is regardless of considerations of caste, creed, language, ethnic origin or political affiliation. Operating on an all-India basis, CASA responds to scores of emergencies * both natural and man-made * every year. CASA has a decentralized disaster preparedness plan. This system has been created through the establishment of a wider and more effective infrastructure network and capacity building programme for CASA staff, representatives of churches, and identified partner organisations, both at the disaster management and grassroots level, who can respond to a call for assistance at short notice, in consultation with and on behalf of the Churches in India. This network is backed by relief materials purchased and pre-stocked at CASA's warehouses at strategic locations throughout the country. The quantum of relief material stored at these locations at any given time is determined on the basis of hazard mapping done by CASA, and is subject to constant review and update. Methodist Engineering Company (MEC) was established in 1952 with an objective to plan, design and construct buildings related to Church organisations and to provide employment to the needy and in the course to train young persons in construction work. MEC is equipped with well qualified and experienced staff as well as consultants of repute. Projects executed by MEC include churches, schools, hostels, hospitals and residential buildings. DESCRIPTION of EMERGENCY SITUATION Background At the tail end of the monsoons, torrential rains all over West Bengal have created havoc. The resulting floods spread over 144 blocks and 37 municipalities, have washed away over five million houses in the state. The death toll has risen to 597, with 273 persons still reported missing. The state relief ministry has said the toll is likely to go up further, since many dead bodies could still be submerged and will be discovered only after the flood waters recede. Among the districts affected are Murshidabad, Birbhum, Burdwan, Malda, Nadia, Hoogly, North 24 Parganas, Katwa, Uttar Dinajpur and Kalighat. The low pressure zone remains and according to weather forecasts, the rains are likely to continue for another few days. Roads, railway tracks, electricity and telephone lines and other infrastructure have been severely damaged. The floods have swept away railway tracks and roads. Large areas of farmland have been inundated and thousands of cattle and livestock are believed to have died. The flood victims are currently deprived of the basic necessities of life. Thousands have lost all their belongings in the swirling flood waters and are faced with scarcity of food, clothing and household goods. Government and district authorities are appealing to NGO's to provide immediate relief and rehabilitation assistance. Current Situation The worst affected districts are Birbhum and Murshidabad, where 200 and 184 people have been reported dead. Of 17 million people affected, 4.7 million are from Murshidabad and one million from Birbhum. According to the state relief ministry, about 3.4 million people in Nadia have been rendered homeless. Many low-lying areas of Calcutta were submerged after the Hooghly experienced over six metres of high tide. According to the state government, property worth US$ 700 million has been damaged due to this flood. Rampurhat in Birbhum recorded the highest rainfall of 175 mm in 72 hours. Air dropping of relief supplies is continuing in Rampurhaat and Murshidabad district. The Panagarh-Morigram Expressway, built at a cost of nearly US$ 30 million and which had been opened only recently, has been breached, breaking road links between Burdwan and Birbhum districts. The flood situation in other districts is equally grim due to incessant rain and floods. Immediate relief measures have been taken up in the priority areas with distribution of food and clothing. Of equal importance are rehabilitation needs covering multi-purpose disaster shelters and tube wells for safe drinking water. This rehabilitation will address the physical infrastructure needs in view of the disaster prone characteristics of the affected districts. Key Problems and Issues Multi-Purpose Flood Shelters Though floods are a recurring feature in the area there are very few flood shelters for people to take refuge in. The need for such shelters is acute in areas most vulnerable to flooding where the population is exposed to the maximum risk. The shelters will thus be constructed and managed as multi-purpose centres, used as schools and community centres in normal times which will ensure optimal utilisation of resources as well as proper maintenance and upkeep. Drinking Water One of the critical needs in the aftermath of any flooding is potable water which is unavailable due to contamination of the drinking water sources. As this becomes a potential health risk and can trigger epidemics, the problem needs to be addressed on a long term basis. Impact On Human Lives Millions of people have been affected and nearly 600 deaths have so far been reported. Description of Damages Vast areas of land have been submerged. Crops, rural and urban housing, roads, river/canal embankments and other infrastructure have been extensively damaged. Millions of people have had to experience the agony of being displaced. The living conditions in the relief camps are appalling and people are not being provided with the basic necessities of life. It is essential for their survival and recovery that timely and precise relief and rehabilitation measures are initiated at this hour of need. Disaster and Emergency Statistics 597 people are so far reported to have lost their lives while many are missing. The floods are spread over 144 blocks and 37 municipalities and have washed away over five million houses in the state. GOAL & OBJECTIVES The goal is to reduce risk in communities most threatened by floods and other disasters. Objectives The specific objectives of the project are: To assist in the provision and promotion of disaster resistant infrastructure in the form of: Multi-purpose disaster shelters Safe drinking water sources Activities and Outputs Construction of 10 multi-purpose disaster shelters. Provision of safe drinking water: 50 tube wells TARGETED BENEFICIARIES CASA will be targeting communities living in vulnerable high risk areas which are prone to recurring disasters. Priority will be given to the most vulnerable sections among those affected including the scheduled tribe and scheduled caste categories who are generally agricultural labourers, share croppers or small farmers comprising the bulk of the poor and the marginalised sections of Indian society. Multi-purpose disaster shelters: It is proposed to construct 10 multi-purpose disaster shelters. Each shelter will provide refuge to 1,500 people in times of need. These shelters will also be used for Panchayat (village council) meetings, meetings of various village groups, vocational trainings, etc. A minimum of 15,000 persons would benefit from the construction of these shelters. Drinking Water: It is proposed to drill 50 tubewells and install handpumps which would each provide safe drinking water to at least 250 persons. The total population thus benefited would be 12,500. Locations For Proposed Response CASA has worked extensively in the state of West Bengal among the poor and the marginalised groups of people and has the required capacity and infrastructure to implement a programme of this nature with the help of churches, government and partner organisations. CASA is currently mobilising rehabilitation teams drawn from its East Zone Office to operate in the worst affected districts of Murshidabad, Nadia and North 24 Parganas. The break up of the allocation of Multi-purpose Disaster shelters and Tubewells is given below: Multi-Purpose Disaster Shelters - 10 North 24 Parganas (Bangaon) - 3 Nadia (Ranaghat) - 4 Murshidabad - 3 Tube Wells - 50 North 24 Parganas (Bangaon) - 20 Nadia (Ranaghat) - 20 Murshidabad - 10 PROPOSED EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE & IMPLEMENTATION Description of Assistance Multi-purpose disaster shelters 10 multi-purpose disaster shelters designed to withstand floods will be constructed. These will be multipurpose in nature and while providing shelter to more than 15,000 people at the time of need, will continue to be used in various other ways for the benefit of the entire community during the rest of the time. Drinking Water 50 tubewells will be sunk and installed with handpumps to benefit more than 12,500 people. The installation will be done so as to permit usage during floods and prevent incursion of contaminated water. Implementation Description The programme will be implemented By CASA in co-operation with the partner agency and secular and church related organisations. The responsibility for implementation of various facets of the programme will be as follows: CASA will be the main implementing partner and will be directly responsible to the resource sharing partners in all respects. CASA will supervise and monitor the working of the other partners and do periodic reporting on the progress of the programme. All finances will be received and accounted for by CASA. Transition From Emergency The rehabilitation programme is aimed at establishing self-sustainable management systems that will continue to operate and grow even beyond the completion of the project. A special component of long term programme security is planned which will cover sustainable self management of disaster shelters by making them multipurpose centres with local management committees. ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE, MONITORING & REPORTING Administration The CASA Director is coordinating the overall operation from Delhi. In this he is being assisted by his staff at the head quarters level. The co-ordination at the state level is with the East Zone office of CASA. Co-ordination, monitoring, consolidation of reports and accounting will be the main functions of this co-ordinating office. At the field level, the team led by the Additional Emergency Officer of the East Zone will be responsible for the implementation of the project in the selected areas. Finance Management & Controls The overall financial management and control will be with the CASA Headquarters. At the State level it will rest with the Chief Zonal Officer of CASA's East Zone office. The Zonal office of CASA has the requisite infrastructure and personnel for implementation of the programme with the assistance of the church and partner organisations and for continuous monitoring of the programme at the field level. The concerned officers will ensure that proper procedures and accounting systems are being followed. Monitoring & Reporting Procedures Monitoring of the project would be done through field visits, submission of reports, staff-partner meetings and interaction with beneficiaries. CASA and its partners will ensure the active involvement and participation of the beneficiaries in the implementation and monitoring of the project activities. The field team will report to the Chief Zonal Officer who in turn will consolidate all reports and accounts and submit the same to the Headquarter. Preparation of the consolidated financial report of the project and the final audit of the accounts would be done at the headquarters level. Progress reports will be prepared on a regular basis and submitted to ACT Geneva as per schedule and guidelines. IMPLEMENTATION TIMETABLE The total project duration will be 9 months from its inception and the project is expected to be completed by July 2001. COORDINATION CASA head quarter will be constantly in touch with ACT Geneva. CASA is also in contact with Lutheran World Service * India for clear demarcation of areas. Links with development actors working within the project area pre-exist based on CASA's prior activities and NGO partnerships in the area. CASA will be working in collaboration with other NGOs for ensuring coordinated implementation of its programmes. In this respect a committee will be formed to co-ordinate and monitor the activities which shall be undertaken, a CASA Co-ordination Committee is proposed with the following representatives: 2 representatives from CASA (1 each from the Zonal Office and the Field Office) 1 Representative from the Churches 1 Representative from Local NGOs 1 Representative from the Government (preferably the Block Development Officer) CASA East Zone Office will be responsible for liaison and co-ordination with the Government and local NGOs as well as for the management of the relief programme including implementation, field monitoring and program and financial reporting. BUDGET ACT/CASA ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE (Rehabilitation Phase) Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ Direct Assistance - Post Crisis Multi-purpose Centres Nos 10 1,350,000 13,500,000 303,371 Drinking Water Tubewells Nos 50 22,000 1,100,000 24,719 Sub total 14,600,000 328,090 PERSONNEL, ADMIN, OPERATIONS & OTHER SUPPORT COSTS Salaries & Benefits Co-ordinator (1) Month 9 8,500 76,500 1,719 Field Staff (3) Month 9 5,500 148,500 3,337 Assistant (1) Month 9 5,500 49,500 1,112 Support Staff (2) Month 9 4,000 72,000 1,618 Others Local & Regional travel Trips 63 3,500 220,500 4,955 Hotel Accomodation Month 9 4,500 283,500 6,371 Telephone & Fax Month 9 5,000 45,000 1,011 Fuel & Maintenance for Vehicles Month 9 5,000 45,000 1,011 Reporting, Promotion & Visibility Month 9 6,000 54,000 1,213 Sub total 994,500 22,348 AUDIT & EVALUATION Audit fees Month 9 5,000 45,000 1,011 APPEAL TARGET & EXPENDITURE (Rehab. Phase) 15,639,500 351,449 Exchange Rate: US$ 1 = Rupees 44.50 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Action by Churches Together (ACT) is a worldwide alliance of churches and their related agencies, meeting human need through co-ordinated emergency response. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Ecumenical Centre Phone: ++41-22-791.60.33 150, route de Ferney Fax: ++41-22-791.65.06 1211 Geneva 2 Telex: 415 730 OIK CH Switzerland http://www.act-intl.org distributed by - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Volunteers in Technical Assistance Disaster Information Center lists: www.vita.org/listsub.htm sitreps nat-dsr web: www.vita.org fireline - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -