Flood situation grim, CM visits more affected areas

Union Home Minister Rajth Singh to visit Assam today to take stock of the situation

BY OUR STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 29: Over 17 lakh have been displaced and wildlife sanctuaries inundated by an overflowing Brahmaputra and its tributaries. As many as 20 people have reportedly died in the State so far and scores of animals have been washed away.

Almost 18 lakh people have been displaced, but only 2 lakh have taken shelter at relief camps. The NDRF, SDRF and Indian Army have set up more than 517 relief camps to help the displaced. Farmers across 22 districts face immense losses with their crops destroyed by floodwaters and their livestock left abandoned. Several districts have been completely cut-off from the rest of the State.

Mobile phone sigls are uvailable in many parts and power transmission lines are down.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sarbanda Sonowal on Friday toured flood affected areas in Dhubri and Chirang districts and took stock of the relief and rescue operations undertaken for the affected people.

He visited a relief camp set up at Pratap Chandra Higher Secondary School at Gauripur and inspected the relief operations being undertaken for the camp inmates. The Chief Minister also took stock of the medical, drinking water and other ancillary facilities being given to the inmates. He asked the administration to take special care of all kinds of medical emergencies and the health of infants, children and aged people living in the relief camp.

Earlier, the Chief Minister convened a review meeting with the Deputy Commissioner (DC) and other line departments and took stock of the relief and rescue operations pressed in to help the marooned people. As the current wave of flood compelled several people to take shelter in the relief camps, Sonowal asked the administration to help the affected people generously with adequate relief materials. Instruction has also been issued to send relief materials to the houses of flood-affected people but not rendered homeless.

He asked the DC to be vigilant with his men and machinery and keep vigil on embankments and other vulnerable areas likely to spur more damages. He also asked the district administration to undertake repair work on the dykes if there is any and ensure security at the relief camps on 24X7 basis.

The Chief Minister informed that fund has already been released for relief and rescue operations and that steps are being taken to provide kerosene, candle and even seedlings to the flood affected people. Minister for Public Health Engineering Rihon Daimary, MLAs Bilasipara East Ashok Singhi, Bilasipara West Hafiz Bashir Ahmed, Gauripur Nijamur Rahman, Golkaganj Ashwini Roy Sarkar, Dhubri zrul Haque, DC Dhubri along with a host of senior officers were present at the meeting.

In the second lap of his gruelling tour, Sonowal held another review meeting with the district administrations of Bongaigaon and Chirang.

After the review meeting the Chief Minister visited Dooma village under Sidli revenue circle and inspected the breach on the embankment of the Aie river which displaced nearly 40 families. He directed the Water Resources Department and district administration to repair the breach on a war footing and take steps to redress the erosion.

Union Home Minister Rajth Singh would visit Assam to take stock of the flood situation tomorrow. Accompanied by Chief Minister Sonowal, the Union Home Minister will make an aerial survey of flood affected areas of gaon, Morigaon and Kaziranga.

Singh will visit Morigaon district and meet the inmates of the relief camps at Bhagatgaon. He will then hold a high level meeting with Sonowal, ministers of concerned departments and senior Government officials at Air Traffic Control conference hall at Lokapriya Gopith Bordoloi Intertiol Airport.

The Union Home Minister will leave for Delhi in the evening.

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