Assam flood situation improves, 1.7 lakh still affected

Guwahati, Jun 25 (PTI) The flood situation in Assam improved on Tuesday as the water level of major rivers receded with declining rainfall and the number of people reeling under the deluge decreased to 1.7 lakh, according to a bulletin.

The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said 1,70,377 people are currently affected by the flood in Bajali, Barpeta, Cachar, Darrang, Goalpara, Kamrup, Karimganj, Nagaon and Hojai districts.

Over two lakh people were reeling under the deluge in the nine districts of the state on Sunday.

The toll in this year’s flood, landslide and storm has risen to 40 with the death of one person in Cachar due to drowning in floodwater on Monday.

The worst affected district is Karimganj with 96,440 people under floodwater, followed by Cachar with over 52,400 and Darrang with nearly 10,802, the bulletin said.

The Kushiara river in Karimganj was flowing above the danger mark, while the other major rivers and their tributaries were showing a receding trend, following the decline in rainfall during the last two days, it said.

Altogether 13,094 people are currently taking shelter in 149 relief camps in the affected districts, the bulletin said.

At least 641 villages are reeling under floodwater and 2,273.44 hectares of crop area have been damaged across the state due to the current spate of flood.

Embankments, roads, bridges and other infrastructure have been damaged by floodwater in most of the affected districts.