Malaysia to pay RM10,000 to families of 54 citizens missing after Nepal floods
Each family will get a one-off payment through the national disaster agency, with spouses first in line, Malaysia's human resources minister said.
Malaysia will give a one-off payment of RM10,000 to the family of each of the 54 Malaysians still unaccounted for after floods struck the Nepal-Tibet border region on August 26, CNA and The Straits Times reported.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim approved the payment at a Cabinet meeting on Friday, November 6. The money will be paid through the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA). CNA converted the sum to US$2,460, while The Straits Times, carrying a Bernama report, gave it as S$3,100.
Human Resources Minister R Ramanan, whom The Straits Times named as Ramanan Ramakrishnan, announced the decision to reporters after visiting a Deepavali carnival at Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur. "We discussed it at length in the Cabinet," he said, according to The Straits Times.
Payments must follow NADMA's order of priority for next of kin. Spouses come first, then parents, then children. "We will issue the list," the minister said.
He said he had told K Raveendran Nair, director-general of the Malaysian Indian Community Transformation Unit, to get further details from the Finance Ministry and contact the families.
CNA reported that a collapse of glacial ice and rock sent torrents of mud, water and debris through Himalayan valleys. The Straits Times placed the avalanche in the upper catchment of Lhende Khola in Tibet, China. According to CNA, the floods swept away buildings and vehicles, destroyed roads and bridges and cut communications and transport links, which hampered rescue work. Tourists and pilgrims travelling to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a site sacred to Hindus and Buddhists, were among those caught.
Malaysia first listed 55 of its citizens as uncontactable. One returned home safely on October 1, CNA said. The government has kept looking for the rest since Nepal ended search-and-rescue operations and moved to recovery.
Citing Nepal government data, CNA put the death toll at 1,451 or more. The Straits Times reported at least 1,450. Both outlets said about 5,700 people remain missing, more than 600 of them foreign nationals.
Sources: CNA, Malaysia to give US$2,400 in aid to families of 54 citizens missing in Nepal-Tibet floods; The Straits Times, One-off aid of $3,100 for families of all 54 Malaysian victims in Nepal flood.
