Over 34000 people have been affected by floods in 19 of Assam’s 31 districts as a result of nearly a week of nonstop rain, according to officials. Lakhimpur district was the hardest hit in the state’s first wave of flooding this year, followed by Dibrugarh. Although no fatalities have been reported to date, the floods have caused erosion and infrastructural damage.
Each year, flooding occurs in Assam, which is flood-prone. Following significant rainfall, floods and landslides forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.
According to a report released on Tuesday by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), this year’s flooding has affected 523 villages and submerged 5842.78 hectares of crops. Guwahati and Silchar are two cities that are experiencing flooding.
The Brahmaputra, one of the biggest rivers in the world, had some of its ferry services cancelled after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a warning for heavy rain through Thursday.
On Tuesday, ASDMA refuted claims that water flow from a dam in Bhutan’s Kurichhu was the only cause of the flooding in western Assam. It was further said that the floods were being brought on by nonstop rain in the upper catchment areas of both Bhutan and Assam.
Residents of Assam’s riverine communities were instructed by ASDMA to prepare emergency kits and stay out of the rising waters. “People are urged to avoid unnecessary river crossings, fishing, gathering firewood, and swimming during these days.”
Strong low-level southerly/southwesterly winds from the Bay of Bengal to northeast India over the next two days, according to IMD on Tuesday, are likely to keep moisture incursion from occurring and provide widespread rainfall. Rainfall of moderate to very heavy amounts, thunderstorms, and lightning were highly likely to continue in Assam and then gradually diminish.
Parimal Suklabaidya, an Assam minister, claimed on Tuesday that communication between Assam’s Barak Valley, Mizoram, Tripura, and Manipur and the rest of the nation had been reestablished following landslides in Sonapur, Meghalaya.
