Assam flood toll rises to seven; 14 lakh hit in 25 districts

[caption id="attachment_260248" align="aligncenter" width="600"] A woman stands near her damaged hut caused due to flooded area due to incessant rainfalls, at Hajo in Kamrup on Saturday. (PTI)[/caption] Guwahati, July 13 (PTI): The flood situation in Assam continued to deteriorate on Saturday with one more person losing his life, taking the toll to seven, as over 14 lakh people were affected by the deluge across 25 districts of the state. Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal called Union Home Minister Amit Shah and briefed him about the latest flood situation in the state. Sonowal said 24x7 flood control rooms have been activated across the districts and that he is monitoring the situation personally. Meanwhile, Shah assured all help from the Centre to the north eastern state and asked the Assam government to ensure all-out efforts to provide relief to the flood-affected. According to the daily flood report of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), one person was killed at Sissibargaon in Dhemaji district. With this, the total number of persons who lost their lives in flood-related incidents in the state this year has gone up to seven. At present, over 14.06 lakh persons have been affected by the floods in Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Darrang, Baksa, Barpeta, Nalbari, Chirang, Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, Dhubri, Goalpara, Kamrup, Morigaon, Hojai, Nagaon, Golaghat, Majuli, Jorhat, Sivasagar, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Cacha and West Karbi Anglong districts, the ASDMA said. Barpeta is the worst hit with 5.22 lakh people suffering, followed by Dhemaji (1.38 lakh people) and Morigaon (nearly 95,000 persons). Till Friday, around 8.7 lakh people were affected by the deluge in 21 districts of the state. The NDRF and SDRF have rescued 848 persons in the last 24 hours across the state, while 4,476.74 quintals of rice, dal, salt and 7,907.11 litres of mustard oil have been distributed along with tarpaulin, water pouches and other essential items. Currently, the Brahmaputra at Guwahati, Nimatighat in Jorhat, Tezpur in Sonitpur, Goalpara and Dhubri towns, while the Barak at AP Ghat in Cachar and Badarpurghat in Karimganj are flowing above the danger mark. The ASDMA report said at present, 2,168 villages are under water and 51,752 hectares of crop areas have been damaged. It said authorities are running 234 relief camps and distribution centres in 21 districts where 20,047 people have taken shelter. Embankments, roads, bridges, culverts and other infrastructure have been hit at various places in Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Kamrup, Barpeta, Baksa, Kokrajhar, Hojai, Darrang, Biswanath, Chirang, Dibrugarh, Nalbari, Dhubri, Majuli, Sivasagar, West Karbi Anglong, Hailakandi, Golaghat and Bongaigaon districts. Massive erosion has been reported at several places of Chirang, Barpeta, Sonitpur and Bongaigaon districts, the report added. Meanwhile, heavy rains have damaged train tracks in Lumding-Badarpur hill section under the Lumding Division of Northeast Frontier Railway, prompting the authorities to cancel a number of trains in the area. "The repair work has already started on a war footing and senior railway officers are camping at the site, monitoring the restoration work. But, heavy rain is continuing in the area, making the soil loose. "It is expected that the restoration work will be completed by July 16 if the weather condition does not deteriorate further," NF Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Pranav Jyoti Sharma said. Home minister directs officials to be high alert for floods; provide help to states Home Minister Amit Shah on aSaturday directed the NDRF and all the agencies dealing with flood rescue and relief operations to remain on high alert so that they are able to handle any situation that arises. Heavy rains and floods have affected Assam, Bihar and Meghalaya. While six people lost their lives in Assam, five died in Meghalaya and two in Bihar. "The home minister has directed the NDRF (National Disaster Relief Force) and all officials concerned to remain on high alert to deal with any situation arising out of the floods," Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai told reporters here. The directive was issued at a high-level meeting, chaired by Shah and attended by top officials. Rai said the home minister also directed the central government officials to be in regular touch with the states which have been affected by the floods so far. "The home minister said all efforts should be made to save lives and properties in the flood-hit areas," Rai said. The meeting reviewed the rains in the country while officials briefed him about the situation in Assam, Bihar and Meghalaya. "NDRF teams have already been deployed in the affected states and, if required, more team will be sent. We are ready to provide whatever help the states will need. 24-hour control rooms have also been set up by agencies concerned," he said. Later in a tweet, Shah said he had a meeting with MoS Nityanand Rai, senior MHA officials and departments concerned on the developing flood situation in various parts of the country. "Directed all related officials to ensure proper relief, rescue and rehabilitation measures," he tweeted.