Guwahati, Assam, Aug 5: The death toll from this year’s floods in Assam has risen to 95 after six more fatalities were reported during the last 24 hours, according to the latest report of the Disaster Reporting and Information Management System (DRIMS).
Of the six deaths, five were caused by flooding, including two each in Biswanath and Sivasagar districts and one in Golaghat. One person died due to urban flooding in the Mayong revenue circle of Morigaon district, while another person has been reported missing in Udalguri.
The Dhansiri (South) River at Numaligarh continues to flow above the danger level, prompting authorities to keep 14 districts on high alert. These include Golaghat, Lakhimpur, Charaideo, Sivasagar, Biswanath, Dhemaji, Kamrup (M), Jorhat, Sonitpur, Tinsukia, Nagaon, Darrang, Karbi Anglong and Udalguri.The report said that more than 1.6 lakh people across 563 villages have been affected by the current wave of floods. Sivasagar has recorded the highest number of affected residents at over 57,000, followed by Golaghat and Jorhat.
Floodwaters have also damaged public infrastructure. DRIMS reported seven embankment breaches, including five at Brahmajan in Biswanath district and two at Mangaldoi in Darrang district. A steel bridge at Cholapothar in Charaideo and a footbridge at Tangla in Udalguri have also sustained damage.
According to the report, 16,951 hectares of agricultural land remain submerged. More than 35,000 livestock have been affected, while around 8,500 animals, mainly in Sivasagar district, have been washed away.
Urban flooding has affected parts of Kamrup, Kamrup (M), Morigaon and Jorhat districts, impacting 734 people. In Kamrup (M), teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and District Disaster Response Force (DDRF) used boats to evacuate 80 people from flooded localities, including Satgaon and Hatigaon. Waterlogging continues in parts of Guwahati, including Juripar and Anil Nagar.
The state government has operationalised 45 relief camps, where 12,356 people are currently taking shelter. In addition, 59 relief distribution centres are supplying essential items to more than 32,000 people. Relief materials, including rice, pulses, salt and cattle feed, are being distributed in the affected areas.
Authorities are monitoring river levels as the Meteorological Department has forecast further rainfall in the catchment areas, which could lead to a rise in water levels.