Ajmal urges tiol media to cover Assam floods

By our Staff

Reporter

GUWAHATI, July 14: AIUDF president Badruddin Ajmal has appealed to the tiol media not to look the other way when people in Assam reel under floods and erosion.

The appeal from the AIUDF president came close on the heels of his appeal to Prime Minister rendra Modi to pay a visit to Assam that has been facing the wreath of floods. The Prime Minister did give numerous assurances to the people of Assam in his May 26, 2017 visit to the city, but is not ready to visit the State when it is crises-stricken, the AIUDF president said.

“Floods and erosion have been creating havoc every year rendering lakhs of people homeless, besides loss of lives and property. The flood-prone area in the State is 31,500 sq. km as assessed by the Rashtriya Barh Ayog which is about 40.16 per cent of the total area of Assam and about 9.40 per cent of the total flood-prone area of the country. It is significant to note that the flood-prone area of Assam is four times of the tiol mark of the flood-prone area in the country,” Ajmal said.

Citing official records, Ajmal said: “From 1997 to 2007, 1050 sq km i.e. 1,27,245 hectares of land has been eroded which displaced 30 lakh people from their origil places and 7 per cent of the total land of Brahmaputra valley of Assam. Moreover, a study revealed that from 1951 to 2000 an area of 4,29,697 hectares has been eroded by the rivers of Assam. So far about 2534 villages, some towns, tea gardens and heritage site have been eroded, affecting lakh of people.”

The AIUDF, Ajmal said, has all along been demanding declaration of flood and erosion in Assam as a tiol calamity and to sanction an aid of Rs 20,000 crore to fight flood every year. “Our demands were raised in Parliament several times, but it went unheard,” he said.

“This year the second wave of flood continues to wreak havoc, so far claiming 46 lives, in the State. The number of people affected by the deluge has also gone up to 17 lakh. So far 2,488 villages have been hit by flood waters under 82 revenue circles across 24 districts of the state. Water is flowing above danger level in the Brahmaputra and its tributaries,” Ajmal said, and added: “In Kaziranga tiol Park, the situation continued to be critical with 73 per cent area submerged, affecting 129 anti-poaching camps.”

The AIUDF president urged the tiol media to send their reporters to cover floods in Assam.