Flood situation worsens in Assam, fourteen lakh affected

Universal News Agency

Guwahati, Sep 24: Flood situation in Assam worsened as water levels increased in most of the major rivers in the State in the past 24 hours and over thirteen lakh people were affected in 16 districts of the State.

Official sources said that the water levels of Brahmaputra, Burhidehing, Subansiri, Dhansiri and Jia Bharali rivers has been on the rise inundating a total of 1,972 villages across the state effected and a total of 13, 81,025 people are affected by the flood.

Rising water levels of Brahmaputra River have also inundated certain areas in Pandu locality in Guwahati forcing the administration to set up three relief camps in the area. Sources said that a total of seven persons have died so far in various places due to floods in past one week.

High Alert has been sounded in the flood affected areas of the state. Most of the rivers are maintaining a rising trend due to heavy rainfall in Assam as well as in neighboring Arunachal Pradesh.

The flood situation is turning grim in almost all the affected districts, the situation is more serious in Kamrup,Nalbari, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Dhemaji, Lakhimpur and Sonitpur districts, said the official sources.

Disaster management department said that 16 teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 60 army teams and 18 teams of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) had already been pressed into service for carrying out relief and rescue works in some of the worst affected districts.

Four helicopters of the Indian Air Force and Army have also been pressed into service in Sadia subdivision of Tinsukia district to air drop necessary food items and rescue marooned people after ferry services have been stopped to Sadia due to rising water levels of Brahmaputra. Ferry services have also been put in halt at River Island Majuli in Jorhat districts as the Brahmaputra is flowing above danger level in many places in the district.

250 villages have submerged in this flood in Majuli. Flood water has also submerged the Majuli Jail and the 41 prisoners have been shifted to Jorhat Central Jailadded the official source.

In Lower Assam too, flood waters have breached Rangia-Goreshwar PWD road at Rangia in Kamrup district on Sunday morning. Parts of Kaziranga National Park and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary and the Dibru Choikhowa National Park have also been submerged.