Staff Reporter
Guwahati: Following the sudden and devastating floods in Dhemaji's Jonai recently, a high-level Inter-ministerial Central Team (IMCT) comprising six members from different Ministries of the Government of India reached Guwahati on Tuesday, and a few of the team members set out to visit the flood-affected areas of Dhemaji from today. The team is slated to visit different flood-affected areas from July 8 to 11, 2026, for an on-spot assessment of the flood damage during the years 2025 as well as 2026, to date.
The team is headed by Praveen Kumar Rai, Joint Secretary (UT), Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India (GoI). Other team members are Mahesh Kumar, Joint Director-FCD, DoE, Ministry of Finance, GoI; Dr SVSP Sharma, Scientist-SF, National Remote Sensing Centre, Hyderabad; Sanjeev Kumar Suman, Director, CWC, Ministry of Jal Shakti; Prabhat Kumar, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development; and Shri Dheeraj, Regional Officer, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
On the first day of their visit, they were accompanied by the Jonai MLA Bhubon Pegu and Lakhimpur MP Pradan Baruah.
Regarding the central team's visit, Bhubon Pegu told The Sentinel, "Firstly, I thank the central government for sending a team to assess the flood situation so promptly. Today, the team came to visit Jonai and me, and MP Pradan Baruah accompanied them. They visited the flood-affected areas of Telem, Simenmukh, Ananda Nagar, Arun Chapori, Dikhari River banks, and the damaged railway bridge and carried out a spot assessment of the damage. They also interacted with local people to understand their problems. We are positive that the team will submit an effective report and the central government will provide the necessary assistance."
During the team's visit, MLA Bhubon Pegu also submitted a memorandum addressed to team leader Praveen Kumar Rai and two other members, praying for 'urgent and proper intervention for flood relief and rehabilitation and long-term flood mitigation in the flood-affected areas of Jonai Co-district in the Dhemaji district'.
The memorandum states that 150 villages under 13 gaon panchayats have been affected by the devastating floods. He also mentioned the worst-affected villages under Sissiborgaon and Jonai Revenue Circles.
In the memorandum, MLA Pegu highlighted the crux of the area's flood problem, stating, "I feel that this disaster is not solely the result of natural causes. Various developmental works and environmental factors in Arunachal Pradesh have significantly aggravated the flood situation in the downstream areas in Assam. These include:
Excavation and excessive extraction of boulders and stones by extensive hill cutting for the construction of roads and railway infrastructure projects in the immediate upstream region of Arunachal Pradesh. Excessive rainfall due to cloudbursts has aggravated the problem. Due to continuous siltation from these activities, many rivers that were once deep and capable of handling floodwater discharge have gradually become shallower, and the riverbeds have risen alarmingly. As a result, they now overflow even during short periods of heavy discharge. The major affected rivers include: 1) Simen 2) Dikhari 3) Silley 4) Leku 5) Depi 6) Rajakhana 7) Rayang 8) Nahar 9) Dimow..."
Upon arrival in Guwahati on Tuesday, the team was briefed by Assam government officials about the flood situation of the current year along with the damage details of the last year in an introductory meeting.
Significantly, the team has been divided into groups who would visit the flood-affected districts of the state during their stay here. The first team is slated to visit the districts of Dhemaji, Lakhimpur and Biswanath (Gohpur), and the second team is to visit the districts of Cachar, Bajali and Chirang. Today, one team headed to Dhemaji while the other proceeded to flood-affected areas in the Cachar district.
Further, the central team is scheduled to wrap up the details with the chief secretary, Govt of Assam, and other senior most officials of the Assam government on July 10, 2026, at Janata Bhawan, Dispur.
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