Flood situation turns grim, 5 lakh affected

BY OUR STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 23: The flood situation continued to deteriorate in the State with close to 5 lakh persons affected in districts like Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Morigaon, Jorhat, Dhemaji, Sivsagar, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Bongaigaon and Chirang.

The Army carried out rescue operations in parts of Chirang district, where surging waters have inundated several villages, and evacuated more than 30 persons.

Assam State Disaster Magement Authority (ASDMA) officials said that 5,02,813 people in 1,039 villages have been hit by floods till Friday evening, with 46,680.24 hectares of cropland inundated in the affected districts.

A total of 21,549 people have taken shelter in 70 relief camps in some of the flood-hit districts, they added.

Surging waters of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries have damaged roads and embankments at many places, spping communication to some of the remote areas of the districts.

While flood waters have damaged seven roads in Sivasagar, embankments have been breached in Kokrajhar and Bongaon.

Defence sources said that the Army moved swiftly on its rescue mission in Chirang amidst a heavy deluge and overflowing rivers.

"Responding to calls for help from local people, the army launched four teams on Friday in the Khungring area of Chirang district and rescued at least 30 people, who were helplessly trapped in their marooned village amidst fast currents," a source said, adding that the army deployed boats to reach the marooned people and made a number of trips against the swift current to save them.

He said that the Army Flood Control Centre at Tezpur is functioning round the clock to monitor the flood situation and coordite relief and rescue efforts wherever required. "All units under the area of responsibility of the Gajraj Corps in Tezpur are fully alert and geared up to react swiftly to any flood related contingency," the sourcesadded.

Floodwaters have also inundated Kaziranga, Dibru-Saikhowa and Pabitora tiol Parks in the State. The water level of the Brahmaputra in Guwahati was rising till filing of this report. Two persons have lost their lives in Lakhimpur and Morigaon districts in the current wave of floods.