Assam floods: 12.5L affected, Kaziranga Park inundated

Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) on Monday said the deluge has taken away chunks of main roads in Morigaon, Jorhat and Dibrugarh districts, snapping road communications and breached river embankments in Kokrajhar, Jorhat, Bongaigaon, Dibrugarh and Golaghat districts causing water to rush into vast tracks of human habitation.

The Brahmaputra and its tributaries are overflowing in 18 districts of the state, flooding Rhino homelands in Kaziranga National Park and Pobitora Wild Life Sanctuary.

The flood-hit districts— where the Brahmaputra and its tributaries are flowing above the danger level are —Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Bongaigaon, Jorhat, Dhemaji, Sivasagar, Barpeta, Kokrajhar, Nagaon, Dibrugarh, Chirang, Goalpara, Tinsukia, Dhubri, Morigaon, Sonitpur, Biswanath and Darrang districts, the ASDMA said. The army, SDRF and NDRF are assisting the district administrations in evacuating the affected population to safer places, the authority said.

An adult male rhino was drowned in a river in Kaziranga National Park (KNP) due to the floods and its carcass with its horn intact was recovered on Monday near Siga camp under Agoratoli camp. Another such dead rhino which was found there two days ago, Forest Department officials said.

Five hog deer were killed by speeding vehicles at Panbari in KNP area when they were crossing NH-37 from the Park towards highlands of Karbi Anglong district this afternoon, the officials said. There are 16 animal corridors on the NH-37 through which various types of animals from the Park side cross over to Karbi Anglong hills during floods, they said. 

The rising water level of the Brahmaputra yesterday brought 85 per cent of KNP area under floods, submerging 117 of the 120 forest camps there and snapping road connectivity. Country boats are the only means of communication for the KNP guards and others, the officials said. 

Patrolling by security forces on elephant back in the World Heritage Site has been intensified pressing 14 elephants into service for the purpose of checking poaching, they added. Meanwhile, the KNP authority has fixed barricades and begun issuing time cards for vehicles plying through the Park to control movement and speed of vehicles.

The Park authority said it is ready to tackle the flood situation in KNP’s four ranges keeping over a hundred country boats, including machine boats, and food material to do water patrolling in all ranges to prevent poaching.

Meanwhile, Assam Governor PB Acharya has expressed concern for the people reeling under floods and surveyed the deluge affected areas by helicopter.