by Naim-Ul-Karim
DHAKA, July 4 (Xinhua) -- The Red Cross Society of China has made a cash donation to help Bangladesh's communities affected by the flooding that has stranded hundreds of thousands of people.
The Chinese embassy in Bangladesh's capital on Tuesday handed over a cheque of 100,000 U.S. dollars on behalf of the Red Cross Society of China to the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society.
BMW Mozharul Huq, secretary general of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, received the cheque from Chen Wei, deputy chief of mission at the Chinese embassy in Dhaka at a handing over ceremony.
Flooding sparked by heavy seasonal rains and onrush of water from hills across the Indian borders have affected parts of Bangladesh.
Authorities have evacuated residents of scores of villages to higher ground in a number of districts that are prone to torrential rains between June and September.
Floods have caused widespread damage to habitation, crops, roads and highways across vast areas of the country.
The donated fund will be distributed among 2,000 flood-hit families in Bangladesh's norther Netrokona district and northeastern Kishorganj district, Huq told Xinhua.
Huq considers this funding critical resource that guarantees life-saving interventions in support of affected communities in the districts.
"I think this cash assistance will help meet the basic needs of the most vulnerable particularly those who are still living in temporary camps."
On behalf of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, Huq expressed sincere thanks and appreciation both to the Chinese government and the Red Cross Society of China to stand by the Bangladeshi flood victims.
The Chinese embassy said the Chinese side is willing to provide assistance for relief work according to Bangladesh's needs.
Plight of millions of people in Bangladesh, criss-crossed by more than 230 rivers, mounts every year as the low-lying South Asian country experiences almost every year seasonal floods whether small or big.
More than 500,000 people in a dozen districts in the country's north and northeast have now been marooned as their homes have gone under up to waist high water.
The residents left their houses wading through flooded roads or on boats in search for shelter or a dry ground to live temporarily.
Experts said Bangladesh, bordering the Bay of Bengal, has become more vulnerable in recent time to climate change-related phenomena like cyclones, flooding, as its capacity to protect its people and land is feeble.
Three months of sustained floods in 1988 left several hundred people dead and caused millions of dollars of damage.
The country was again ravaged by major flooding in 1998 that left millions homeless and caused huge damage.
In 2007, two rounds of floods in Bangladesh killed more than 1,000 people.
