The Assam flood has already claimed the lives of at least 108 people. However, a statement from the Assam State Disaster Management Authority stated that the overall population affected decreased to 45.34 lakh in 30 districts from Wednesday’s 54.50 lakh in 32 districts (ASDMA). Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister of Assam, has also conducted an airborne reconnaissance of the critically damaged Silchar town.
The death toll from floods and landslides in Assam over the past 24 hours has risen to 108, including as many as two children. To now, rescuers have transferred 2,84,875 individuals to 1,395 relief sites.
All Assam schools will close, according to the Assam government. The Assam School Summer Vacations have been postponed and rescheduled to start earlier than expected due to the tragic scenario surrounding the Assam Floods. The summer break for Assam schools will now start on June 25, 2022.
On June 17, The New York Times’ international section had a front-page article about the Assam floods. But the equation differs from what is reported in the mainstream media. Has Assam’s devastating monsoon become into yet another annual event that no longer receives the attention it deserves in the national media arena as the death toll rises?
Perhaps, but not any longer. never before yesterday.
Cameras have finally made it to Guwahati to document the political scuffle within the Maharashtra government. Along with the Shiv Sena-BJP dispute, information is emerging about the catastrophic weather event that is causing devastation throughout the State.
How much of the “breaking” news — which involves Guwahati — is actually about the Assam floods? Media attention has been focused on political events at a hotel in Guwahati and rallies outside the same hotel.
But now that Shiv Sena rebel leaders have arrived in Assam, the opposition has begun to speak out about the flood situation, criticising the state’s BJP government for engaging in “petty politics” at a time when the state is experiencing catastrophic flooding.
Centre closely monitoring situation: PM Modi
According to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the central government is actively coordinating with the Assam state administration to offer all support necessary to address the problem while also regularly monitoring the flood situation there.
“Army and NDRF teams are present in the flood-affected areas. They are conducting evacuation operations and assisting those who are affected. The Air Force has conducted over 250 sorties as a part of the evacuation process,” he said.
Death toll increasing
The seven further deaths, two each from Cachar and Barpeta, as well as one from each of the districts of Bajali, Dhubri, and Tamulpur, were recorded throughout the day, bringing the total number of fatalities since mid-May to 108.
Large areas of land remained under water, despite the fact that in some places the water had retreated, and the Brahmaputra and Barak rivers, as well as their tributaries, are in spate in most of the affected districts.
Following the airborne assessment, the CM assessed the flood situation in the Barak Valley area and said that additional Army columns would be dispatched to Silchar town in order to evacuate the marooned residents there.
Rescue operation is going on
“Rescue activities are being carried out by the NDRF, SDRF, Army, and other organisations. But tomorrow, more Army columns would arrive to rescue the marooned citizens “After the review conference, Sarma informed media in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Silchar, Cachar district. However, he omitted to mention how many columns will be used.
According to Sarma, 30 packets including food, water bottles, and other necessities were airdropped on Thursday by IAF helicopters at various locations in flood-affected Silchar, and this will continue for the next few days. As clean drinking water is in short supply, more water bottles from Guwahati will be airlifted to Silchar, according to him. “We plan to airdrop one lakh bottles of drinking water daily,” he said.
Power supply disrupted
While engineers from the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) will arrive in Silchar from Guwahati, the power supply was interrupted in various portions of the town but has since been restored in some.
Sarma noted that there was a risk involved in fixing the submerged transformers. On Friday, ten more cops will join the other ones in aiding the district administration in assisting those in need. The CM also instructed it to work with locals and elected officials to create ward-by-ward micro-level plans for Silchar town.
Effect on various villages
The Barak and Kushiara rivers’ rising water levels severely impacted the three districts of Cachar, Hailakandi, and Karimganj in the Barak Valley, while Silchar town was drowned as a result of an embankment break.
According to an ASDMA bulletin, the districts with the highest number of flood victims are Barpeta (10,32,561), Kamrup (4,29,166), Nagaon (5,03,308), and Dhubri (3,99,945).
Cachar, Darrang, Goalpara, Karimganj, and Morigaon all reported experiencing urban flooding. 2,84,875 prisoners have sought refuge in 759 relief camps as a result of the severe floods brought on by nonstop rain, which have impacted 103 revenue circles and 4536 localities.
Those flood victims who had not sought shelter in the relief camps received supplies from 636 delivery stations. In addition, 173 highways and 20 bridges were damaged by the floods, and three embankments were damaged or breached in the Baksa and Darrang districts, respectively.
Effect on Animals and Crops
This second wave of flooding has harmed a crop area of 100869.7 hectares and 33,77,518 animals, while 84 animals were washed away during the day. In addition to Baksa, Barpeta, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Chirang, Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Morigaon, Nalbari, Sonitpur, Tamulpur, and Udalguri, widespread erosion was also recorded from these locations.
The Chenab Times News Desk