Assam flood: Six more die, 7.2 lakh people affected

Guwahati: The flood situation in Assam has deteriorated with six more persons, including two children, losing their lives and nearly 7.2 lakh people coming under the impact of the deluge across 22 districts.

According to the daily flood report of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), four persons drowned in Kampur revenue circle of Nagaon district.

One person at Doboka in Hojai district and a child at Silchar in Cachar, too, died due to the flood, it said on Sunday.

The death toll due to the flood and landslides this year has now gone up to 24 across Assam.

ASDMA said more than 7,19,540 people have been impacted in several districts -- Barpeta, Biswanath, Cachar, Darrang, Goalpara, Golaghat, Hailakandi, Jorhat, Kamrup, Karbi Anglong West, Karimganj, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Morigaon, Nagaon, Sonitpur and Udalguri.

Nagaon is the worst hit with almost 3.46 lakh people in distress, followed by Cachar (over 2.29 lakh people) and Hojai (over 58,300 people).

Till Saturday, over 6.8 lakh people were affected by the deluge across 31 districts of the state.

At present, 2,095 villages are under water and 95,473.51 hectares of crop area has been damaged in the state, the ASDMA bulletin said.

It said the authorities are operating 421 relief camps and distribution centres in eight districts, where 91,518 people, including 18,626 children, have taken shelter.

Around 253 people have so far been evacuated from various flood-hit parts of Assam.

Massive erosion has been witnessed in Barpeta, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Goalpara, Kamrup Metropolitan, Morigaon, Nalbari and Udalguri, among other districts, the bulletin said, adding, floodwaters have also caused damage to embankments, roads, bridges and other infrastructure at various places.

Brahmaputra's tributaries Kopili at Dharamtul and Kampur, and Disang at Nanglamuraghat were flowing above the danger mark, cautioned ASDMA.

Meanwhile, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said he held a discussion with NHAI Chairperson Alka Upadhyaya in New Delhi on issues related to national highways in the northeastern state.

"I stressed urgent repair of the flood and landslide-affected NHs and timely completion of the ongoing projects," he said on Twitter.