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Assam Floods: Nearly 5 lakh affected as rain washes away houses, inundates crop land

1 min read 23 Jun 2023, 06:09 PM IST Anwesha Mitra

Nearly 3 lakh people affected by floods in Assam, with an 'orange alert' issued by the India Meteorological Department for heavy rainfall over the next few days.

Tens of thousands of people have moved to relief camps with one person swept to death by flood waters caused by heavy monsoon rains battering swathes of villages in India’s remote northeast this week, a government relief agency said on Friday. (AP) — Tens of thousands of people have moved to relief camps with one person swept to death by flood waters caused by heavy monsoon rains battering swathes of villages in India’s remote northeast this week, a government relief agency said on Friday. **(AP)**

The Assam flood situation continues to remain grim with houses washed away and nearly 3 lakh people affected. Officials said that one person had died in flood waters earlier this week with more than 1,300 villages inundated. Nearly 4.96 lakh people have been severely affected in 22 districts of Assam as the flood situation deteriorated on Thursday.

According to reports, nearly 2.61 lakh people in 196 villages of Bajali district have been affected by the flood. Water from the Pahumara River has submerged several villages in the Pathsala area - including the Swahid Madan Rauta Sub-Divisional Civil Hospital. Officials shifted all patients to other hospitals on Friday.

With houses being washed away in several areas, villagers have now been forced to take shelter roads, embankments, and highlands. Flood waters have reportedly submerged 297.30 hectares of cropland in Bajali district.

Meanwhile in the Kokrajhar district of Assam, flood waters from the Madati River washed away a wooden bridge in the Gossaigaon area on Thursday. Rising water levels also damaged a bridge in the Kumarikata area of Tamulpur.

According to the state disaster agency, around 14,000 people have already left their homes for emergency shelters. The state remains braced for more downpours this weekend by evacuating people in low-lying areas. Overall, nearly 500,000 people have been hit by the monsoon floods in the state.

Mudslides triggered by heavy rains have occurred in several parts of Assam and Sikkim states. According to the flood report released by state authorities, Bajali is the worst affected region. This is followed by 77,702 people affected in Nalbari, 65,221 people in Barpeta, 25,613 people in Lakhimpur, 24,023 people in Baksa, 19,208 people in Tamulpur, 13,704 people in Darrang and 65,38 people in Kokrajhar district.

The India Meteorological Department has issued an 'orange alert' for the northeastern state and predicted 'very heavy' to 'extremely heavy' rainfall in several districts over the next few days.

(With inputs from agencies)