Assam’s flood situation remained grim with eight more people losing their lives while a population of over 29 lakh are affected on Thursday, officials said.
Most parts of Cachar district headquarter town Silchar remained waterlogged for the 11th day.
The toll due to floods and landslides this year increased to 159 with eight more people dying in six districts Nagaon, Lakhimpur, Barpeta, Biswanath, Dhemaji and Morigaon, according to a bulletin issued by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).
One person was also reported missing in Cachar district.
The population affected by the floods, however, declined to 29.80 lakh in 25 districts as against the previous day’s 31.54 lakh.
An Inter-Ministerial Central Team has reached Assam to assess the damage caused by the calamity.
Rivers such as the Brahmaputra, Beki, Kopili, Barak and the Kushiyara are flowing above the danger level at various places.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma held a virtual conference with the deputy commissioners of the flood-affected districts and directed them to pay Rs 3,800 to each family staying in relief camps and other self-arranged shelters on dykes, roads and others within the next four days.
He also asked them to prepare lists of damage by July 15.
We are committed to ensure relief and compensation to all affected people and no genuine person should be left out of the lists to be made by the deputy commissioners, he said.
The task force for damage assessment must also submit the list of affected livestock and other damage by August 8 so that compensation could be cleared by August 15, Sarma said.
Our government will also provide Rs 1,000 to students whose study materials were damaged by floodwaters, he said.
In Silchar, several areas are still waterlogged and the situation is still critical with a shortage of food, drinking water and medicines being faced by the affected people.
Cachar Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli said that continuous work was going on to repair the damaged portion of the dyke breached at Bethukundi which led to the waterlogging in the town.
Work is also going on to repair the breached dyke at Barjuri under Katigorah revenue circle of Cachar district, she added.
Meanwhile, the ASDMA bulletin said that 2,608 villages under 75 revenue circles have been affected across the state while 3,05,565 people have taken shelter in 551 relief camps.
Relief materials were distributed from 355 delivery points among flood-hit people who have not taken shelters in the relief camps.
The worst affected districts include Cachar with a total population of 14,31,652 followed by Nagaon with 5,19,463 and Barpeta with 4,00,502.
Two embankments were breached, one each in Biswanath and Udalguri, while 221 roads and five bridges have been damaged.
According to the bulletin, 557 houses were fully damaged while 602 have been partially damaged due to the floods.
A crop area of 76,115 hectares has been inundated while 51 animals were washed away and 10,39,293 affected.
Meanwhile, an Inter-Ministerial Central Team arrived in Guwahati on Thursday and held a meeting with the various stakeholders engaged in flood management, an official release said.
The team members will visit the flood-hit districts on July 1 and 2.
