Rain fury displaces 650 Guwahati residents, moved to relief camps

GUWAHATI: At least 650 citizens of Guwahati, affected by floods and landslides, have been displaced from their homes and taken shelter in three relief camps as the monsoon rain continued to lash the northeast’s biggest city for the second day on Wednesday.
Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “This is an unusual natural disaster. There is excess rainfall…haven’t witnessed so much rain at one time in the past 20 years.”
Schools and colleges remained closed while many localities of the city remained inundated. Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) has cut off power supply to several flooded areas, including Bishnupur Path and Rukmininagar as a precautionary measure. It said power supply can be restored only after the water level recedes so as to ensure safety of residents. Foodwaters have receded slightly in Anil Nagar and its adjacent locality Nabin Nagar, two of the worst-affected localities in the city. Prasanta Barman, a resident of Anil Nagar, said the water was nearly 5 feet high on Tuesday morning after heavy rainfall on Monday night. “However, the water has receded slightly, we are now under 2 feet of water,” he added.