Floods in Assam have affected over 9 lakh people across more than 1,800 villages in 25 districts, while 41 people have lost their lives so far. Thousands of livestock have also been washed away.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reviewed the flood situation in the worst-hit districts of Assam and described the scale of devastation as “unimaginable”. Sarma attributed the widespread flooding to upstream cloudbursts and localised heavy rainfall, which he said was a staggering 436 per cent above normal.
He pointed out that several villages, which had never witnessed such severe flooding in recent memory, found themselves completely inundated this time. The Chief Minister said the state administration has adopted a "whole-of-government approach" to tackle the crisis, with the Indian Air Force, NDRF, SDRF and district administrations carrying out round-the-clock rescue and evacuation operations using both air and boat services.
According to Sarma, more than 148 relief camps have been set up across the affected areas, sheltering nearly 30,000 people. He added that the government has already dispatched over 3 lakh kg of rice, along with other essential relief materials, to the worst-hit districts, with more supplies on the way.
The Chief Minister added that the state government is coordinating with various departments as well as the Centre to chalk out a comprehensive long-term rehabilitation package for the affected families.
He further said that once the immediate crisis subsides, Assam would initiate talks with neighbouring states to strengthen coordination and evolve better mechanisms to deal with the recurring impact of upstream cloudbursts and future flood disasters in the region.
The Army, Air Force and other agencies continued relief and rescue operations, with drones being pressed into service to provide essential items to stranded people in remote locations.
The worst affected districts include Sivasagar, Charaideo, Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Hojai, Jorhat, Kamrup, Kamrup Metropolitan, Karbi Anglong and Nagaon. Sivasagar is the most hit, with nearly four lakh people affected, followed by Charaideo (around 1.11 lakh), and Jorhat (over 97,000).
The India Meteorological Department has issued an alert for the next four days as it forecast thunderstorms, lightning and heavy rain at isolated places.
The ASDMA bulletin said Desang and Dikhow were flowing above the “severe flood” level at two places in Sivasagar district, while the Dhansiri (S) had breached that level at Numaligarh in Golaghat. The Buridihing river in Khowang and Kushiyara in Sribhumi were also flowing above the danger level.
“All agencies are on the ground responding to the unprecedented flood situation triggered by a cloudburst in the neighbouring hills area and excessive rainfall. Relief operations are underway with the distribution of food, drinking water medicines and sanitary napkins, while rescue efforts continue in the affected areas,” the CMO said in a social media post on Thursday.
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