Despite showing a slight improvement on Sunday, Assam floods claimed six more lives, including two of children — taking the overall death toll to 24. As per Assam State Disaster Management Authority's (ASDMA's) Flood Reporting and Information Management System (FRIMS) bulletin, the number of affected districts reduced to 22. Kopili and Disang rivers were flowing 'above danger level' while no river was flowing 'above highest flood level'. However, more than seven lakh people continue to be affected by the floods and there's been no let-up in damage and destruction caused to croplands and other forms of livelihood. This nightmarish scenario is not new for Assam — the state whose 31.05 lakh hectares area (40 per cent) of the total 78.523 lakh hectares is prone to annual flooding. Depending on the intensity of nature's fury, the state has been losing lives, livelihoods and property year after year. The solution also, it seems, is left to nature's kindness! Those responsible for action appear to come in motion each time the state is battered by a deluge and provide safety relief to the people but, unfortunately, very little has been done in terms of capacity building and finding structural solutions that could ensure mitigation on a sustained basis. Worse still, attempts at meticulously studying the factors that lead to annual floods in Assam have been abysmal. From Guwahati's distinct bowl-like topography to steep-sloped Brahmaputra's overflowing sedimentation and high magnitude of erosion along the river banks — there are a range of factors that demand detailed study. To expect a comprehensive and sustainable solution to Assam floods without in-depth understanding of natural and man-made causal factors will be utter foolishness. Until now, the flood containment practice in the state has been mainly focused on building embankments. This strategy has its own limitations. In the first place, the high incidence of erosion along river banks renders embankments inefficient. Annual land erosion in Assam is estimated to stand at 8,000 hectares. Secondly, one will also have to consider the sheer unpredictability of the course of rivers in Assam which defy the boundaries of embankments. Construction of dams has been long ruled out by environmentalists and locals as an effective preventive measure against floods in the state. Given the slope nature of Brahmaputra and other basins, control and release of water through dams could be a tricky thing. Governments in the past have also deliberated upon digging the river beds to remove sediments. But sedimentation is a never-ending process in river basins of the state. De-sedimentation is barely going to yield any positive results. It has to be understood that rivers are a strong natural force and their ambit expands far beyond a particular state. In order to chalk out a holistic plan for controlling floods in Assam, a broader outlook — covering even the expanse of river basins in neighboring states — will have to be adopted. The solution essentially lies in cooperation between Assam on one side and Centre and other northeastern states on the other. The cooperation, in turn, will yield results only when it is backed by ample study, data and information sharing. Rather than just coming up with quick-fix measures each year, the state government must consider investing heavily on long-term solutions, including R&D, to relieve people from the annual disaster. Given the bonhomie between the state and Central leadership, the time may be perfect to initiate far-reaching solutions. Every penny invested in this direction will bring huge benefits. Economic losses accruing to floods and landslides are unfathomable — particularly so in a state like Assam whose economy is majorly driven by utilization of natural resources. While the floods are considered a boon for cropland rejuvenation, their onslaught on standing crops is an immediate blow to the livelihood of millions. One would argue that floods are a natural disaster and only little can be done to prevent those. But the state's responsibility cannot be limited to rescue and relief operations and building embankments. A vacuum appears to exist in terms of sustainable policy aimed at diluting Assam's persistent problem. This has to be filled soon.