Amit Shah To Chair High-Level Meet Today To Review Preparedness For Flood Situation As Monsoon Marches Ahead

Large parts of Bihar, Assam, and other eastern states are inundated every year due to a rise in the water level of various rivers due to monsoon rains.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah. ( Image Source :PTI Images )

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is set to chair a meeting on Sunday to review preparedness to deal with floods that affect various parts of the country during the monsoon. Large parts of Bihar, Assam, and other eastern states are inundated every year due to a rise in the water level of various rivers due to monsoon rains.

"The home minister will chair a high-level meeting here on Sunday to review overall preparedness for flood management in the country," news agency PTI quoted a home ministry official as saying.

Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and a few other states also face landslides and other rain-related issues during the monsoon. Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Jammu and Kashmir have also seen floods in recent years.

Currently, Assam is reeling under floods, with around 3.90 lakh people affected in 19 districts, officials said. The flood situation in Assam improved marginally as the number of affected people and districts decreased though two more deaths were reported, an official bulletin said on Saturday.

Two deaths were reported in the state in the last 24 hours, taking the toll in this year's flood, landslide and storm to 39, an Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) bulletin said.

Assam Flood

In Assam, over 3.90 lakh people continued to reel under floodwater as the overall situation remained grim, PTI reported on Saturday, citing officials. Even though there was a slight improvement in the flood situation with receding rainfall bringing respite in some parts of the northeastern state, 19 districts remained affected, they said.

Altogether 3,90,491 people remained affected in Kamrup, Tamulpur, Hailakandi, Udalguri, Hojai, Dhubri, Barpeta, Biswanath, Nalbari, Bongaigaon, Baksa, Karimganj, South Salmara, Goalpara, Darrang, Bajali, Nagaon, Cachar and Kamrup Metropolitan districts as on Friday evening.

According to ASDMA bulletin, the affected population in the state is spread across 33 revenue districts and 1,027 villages. Cropland of 3,995.33 hectares was still under flood waters, while 2,20,546 animals, including 47,795 poultry, remain affected. As many as 134 relief camps have been set up, sheltering 17,661 inmates, while another 94 relief distribution centres are also operational in the state.