Assam floods: 8.5 lakh people hit

The deluge has hit over 8.5 lakh people in 984 villages in Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh, Bongaigaon, Sonitpur, Barpeta, Jorhat, Goalpara, Morigaon, Dhubri, Kamrup, Golaghat and Nagaon districts, said a flood bulletin from the Assam State Disaster Management Authority. The floods have claimed 13 lives so far and nearly 50,000 hectares of farmland has been submerged.

With the Brahmaputra and its tributaries flowing over danger mark due to rains in upper reaches of Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan, the overflowing <g data-gr-id="21">flood waters</g> have damaged roads in Dibrugarh, Sonitpur, Goalpara and Nagaon, while two bridges were damaged in Sonitpur district, the report said.

Even as the state government sought an interim amount of Rs 500 crore for relief, rehabilitation and repair works in the flood-affected areas, Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Jitendra Singh visited the affected areas of Bongaigaon district. 

The Union Minister said: “The Centre is giving all possible help to the state government from the first day of the floods in Assam.” He added:  “Due to <g data-gr-id="19">immediate</g> and prompt response from the Government, the damages and causalities rate could be minimised.”