KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress President Gagan Kumar Thapa has said that there is a tradition of all political parties coming together and working with the same thinking and determination in times of national calamity.

Talking to media persons after the all-party meeting called by the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Thapa said the party has called an all-party meeting of the major political parties in and outside the parliament.

He informed that various issues were discussed in the meeting and some decisions were also taken. Thapa said that preliminary information about the search and rescue activities being carried out by the government was given in the meeting and the information received and their understanding were presented with the objective of further support to the government.

He said that the first priority now is to search for the missing people, rescue and provide immediate relief to the people lost in the floods. He said that all the mechanisms including security and administrative mechanism are being mobilized on behalf of the state.

Thapa, however, stressed on the need to make arrangements so that the state can mobilize other available resources as per the need.

He said that they are ready to help if the state wants to mobilize them in times of disaster. According to Thapa, in response to the proposal of the Congress in the meeting, the Home Minister had said that the party cadres should be mobilized immediately in the disaster-hit areas. He said that the proposal was received to mobilize the number of party cadres, especially in cleaning the roads and in search and rescue work.

“According to the need now, we have made disaster structures within our respective parties. We will coordinate with the government and mobilize these structures,” he said. Thapa said that the Congress will mobilize the disaster structures within the party as per the current needs and coordination with the government.