Assam Floods: Situation Worsens, Lakhs Seek Safety As Floodwaters Hit Another District

Thousands more came to be affected by the floods in Assam on Wednesday. So far 818 villages in 22 districts have been hit by the floods.

Assam floods: People try to gather their belongings and evacuate in Golaghat district. ( Image Source :Pallav Bora )

The flood situation in Assam worsened on Wednesday with the number of people affected by the deluge rising to 3,40,937. Several areas in 818 villages under 52 revenue circles across 22 districts are still submerged under the floodwaters. However, no casualty due to the floods was reported in the last 24 hours with the death toll remaining unchanged at 15 so far this year, the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) flood report stated.

The districts currently affected are Barpeta, Biswanath, Chirang, Darrang, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Goalpara, Golaghat, Jorhat, Kamrup, Kamrup Metropolitan, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Morigaon, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Sonitpur, Tamulpur, and Udalguri, the ASDMA report stated.

Majuli is the worst-affected district with a population of 65,035 being hit by the current wave of flood, followed by Golaghat (58,439), Morigaon (44,181), Biswanath (36,671), Sivasagar (28,669), Darrang (28,657) and Lakhimpur (24,594), the report added.

Till Tuesday, Lakhimpur was the worst-hit district with a total of 71,889 people being affected. However, the situation improved after the flood waters receded from many areas of the district over the past 24 hours.

Altogether, 1,308 flood-affected people have been currently taking shelter in 153 relief camps in three districts-Dibrugarh (976), Chirang (225), and Udalguri (107). As many as 150 relief distribution centres are also functional.      

On the other hand, the floods have affected over 21,644 hectares of cropland in 18 districts of the state. Altogether, 3,02,932 animals and poultry have also been affected by the flood in six districts, the ASDMA report said. The respective local administrations of the flood-affected districts and volunteers of the Centre's Aapada Mitra programme are engaged in the rescue and relief operations.

Roads, bridges and other infrastructures have been damaged and embankments breached in the districts of Darrang, Udalguri, Dhubri, Golaghat, Jorhat, Kamrup Metropolitan, Majuli, Morigaon, Udalguri, Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur, Nagaon, Nalbari and Sonitpur, the ASDMA report stated. 

The floodwaters have also affected the Orang National Park and Tiger Reserve in the Darrang district and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Morigaon. Thirteen of the total 44 anti-poaching camps in Orang National Park and Tiger Reserve have been inundated, while 10 forest camps are submerged under the floodwaters in the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, the report added. 

Erosion has also been reported in Barpeta, Biswanath, Dibrugarh, Majuli, Nalbari, Sonitpur and Udalguri. Meanwhile, the Brahmaputra continues to flow above the danger mark in Dhubri, Goalpara, Guwahati, Tezpur, and Jorhat.