Children and elders on tarpaulins, fearing snakes and scorpions at night: For the past three days, life has been on a dam in East Champaran; families say they stay awake all night to monitor their belongings.

"It's been four days. We are neither sleeping properly nor do we have any accommodation. The biggest concern is for the children. There's a constant fear that insects, snakes, or wild animals might come. We are spending the entire night awake or tossing and turning in this fear. Somehow, we are managing to get through each day and night. Life is going on with great difficulty." This is what Lal Ji, a flood-affected villager, says, as he stands at the Champaran embankment, witnessing the lives of hundreds of others.