Assam flood situation remains grim as death toll rises to 97; 1.68 lakh affected
Assam's flood situation remained severe on Thursday as two more deaths were reported, taking the toll from this year's deluge to 97, while over 1.68
Assam's flood situation remained severe on Thursday as two more deaths were reported, taking the toll from this year's deluge to 97, while over 1.68 lakh people continued to be affected across 15 districts, according to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA). The latest casualties were reported from Golaghat and Udalguri districts, where one person each died in the last 24 hours. Golaghat continued to be the worst-hit district with nearly 54,000 people affected, followed by Sivasagar with over 49,000 and Jorhat with around 27,000 flood-affected residents. Read Full Story The affected districts include Golaghat, Sivasagar, Udalguri, Kamrup Metropolitan, Nagaon, Kamrup, Darrang, Sonitpur, Hojai, Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Jorhat, Charaideo, Karbi Anglong and Dhemaji.
The number of people impacted has increased from around 1.6 lakh across 14 districts reported on Wednesday. The ASDMA said 133 relief camps and distribution centres are currently operational in six districts, providing shelter and assistance to nearly 45,000 displaced people. Floodwaters have inundated 481 villages and damaged crops spread across 14,382.26 hectares. The Dhansiri river at Numaligarh continued to flow above the danger level, the bulletin added. The floods have also caused damage to embankments, roads, bridges and other public infrastructure in several districts, while around 41,475 domestic animals and poultry have been affected. Meanwhile, railway connectivity in Sivasagar district has been partially restored after floodwaters damaged tracks and disrupted services for nearly two weeks.
The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said train operations resumed on restored sections from Thursday afternoon, though only diesel locomotive-hauled trains will run initially as a precautionary measure. NFR said the decision was taken to ensure public safety as several flood-affected people, including children and livestock, were still taking shelter on or near railway tracks. Several trains, including the Nagaland Express, Guwahati-Ledo-Guwahati Intercity Express, Lumding-Tinsukia-Lumding DEMU and Tinsukia-Jorhat Town Passenger, will operate via Moranhat, while long-distance services will continue on diverted routes for the time being. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the flood-affected railway section between Selenghat, Amguri, Simaluguri and Sivasagar Town was restored and made operational at 4 pm on Thursday, allowing direct train services between Guwahati and Dibrugarh via Lumding and Sivasagar to resume.
The BriefWire