The flood situation in Assam worsened on Tuesday night, with 21 more people losing their lives in the past 24 hours, taking the overall death toll to 31.
Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) sources informed that among the latest fatalities, Sivasagar district reported the highest number with 14 deaths, followed by six deaths in Charaideo, five in Jorhat, two each in Golaghat and Dhemaji and one each in Sonitpur and Karbui Anglong districts.
ASDMA has been issuing advisories from time to time with continuous rise in the water levels of Desang at Nanglamoraghat in Sivasagar district.
“The river Desang continues to flow in extreme flood situation. Due to continuous increase of water level of River Dhansiri (S) at Numaligarh in Golaghat district of Assam, Citizens are advised to stay away from the river Citizens are advised to stay away from the river,” the latest advisory issued on Tuesday midnight
The floods have now affected more than 5.64 lakh people across 16 districts—Sivasagar, Jorhat, Charaideo, Golaghat, Dibrugarh, Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, Biswanath, Udalguri, Hojai, Nagaon, Kamrup, Kamrup (Metro), Tinsukia and Karbi Anglong.
According to ASDMA, floodwaters have submerged 872 villages across 44 revenue circles, while 24,210 hectares of agricultural land remain inundated, causing extensive damage to standing crops and affecting livelihoods across the state.
Sivasagar continues to be the worst-affected district, with more than 3.59 lakh people impacted by the floods. Jorhat has reported 87,662 affected residents, followed by Charaideo with 72,646, Dibrugarh with 18,615 and Golaghat with 16,799.
As many as 273 relief camps and relief distribution centres, where over 1.14 lakh people are currently taking shelter.
Rescue and relief efforts have been intensified, with the Indian Army, Indian Air Force, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Assam Police and district administrations jointly conducting evacuation and assistance operations in the flood-affected areas.
