10 Dead, 7 Lakh Affected in Assam; Tripura May Use Chittagong Port To Move Goods

Assam continues to battle with floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains, with one more person losing his life on Thursday, 19 May. Ten people have died in this year's flood and landslides so far.

An official bulletin said that nearly 7.18 lakh people in 27 districts have been affected by the deluge.

Meanwhile, the Tripura government is planning to transport essentials into the state through Chittagong port in Bangladesh. The state is facing a shortage of food and fuel as railway services have been affected due to ongoing floods and landslides in Assam.

"Even though the Assam-Agartala national highway is opened for vehicular movement, disruption in train service for a long period will have an adverse impact on the normal supply of essential items to Tripura. That is why we are planning to bring essentials by using an alternative way – the Haldia- Chittagong-Akhaura-Agartala transhipment route to transport essential items on an emergency basis," principal secretary to the Tripura transport department, LH Darlong, said.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), barring Mizoram, all the northeastern states have received rainfall in 'large excess.'

Rahul Gandhi Urges Party Workers to Extend Support

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urged party workers to provide all possible assistance to the people affected by the severe floods in Assam.

"Lakhs of people are affected by severe flooding in Assam. I urge Congress workers and leaders to continue extending all possible assistance to the rescue and relief operations," he said in a tweet.

The Situation in Assam

One person died after drowning, and two more people are reportedly missing in the Kampur revenue circle of Nagaon district, as per the daily flood report of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).

ASDMA informed that more than 7,17,500 people have been affected due to floods in Bajali, Baksa, Barpeta, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Cachar, Darrang, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Dima Hasao, Goalpara, Hailakandi, Hojai, Kamrup, Kamrup Metropolitan, Karbi Anglong West, Karimganj, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Morigaon, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sonitpur and Udalguri districts.

Nagaon remains the worst affected, with over 3.31 lakh people suffering. Cachar (1.6 lakh) and Hojai (97,300) have also been severely hit.

The ASDMA said that 1,790 villages had been inundated, and 63,970.62 hectares of crop areas had been damaged across Assam.

Dima Hasao Cut Off From the Rest of the Country

Dima Hasao has been cut off from the rest of the country, and Air Force helicopter services are operational in the region for the emergency airlift of stranded passengers and supply of essential foodgrains, officials informed.

"A team of 20 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel with all necessary equipment have been air transported today from Guwahati to Haflong, Dima Hasao for further search and rescue operation of the stranded people," ASDMA said in a statement.

Landslides in Several Districts

More landslides were witnessed in Dima Hasao, thus making rescue efforts even more difficult.

Massive landslides have also been witnessed in Bajali, Baksa, Barpeta, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Charaideo, Dhubri, Goalpara, Kamrup, Kamrup Metropolitan, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Sonitpur, South Salmara, Tamulpur, Tinsukia, and Udalguri districts.

Floodwaters have damaged embankments, roads, bridges, and other infrastructure in Morigaon, Udalguri, Darrang, Karbi Anglong West, Biswanath, Barpeta, Cachar, Dhemaji, Goalpara, Hailakandi, Nagaon, Lakhimpur, Nalbari, Sonitpur, Bajali, Dibrugarh, Hojai, Kamrup, Kokrajhar, and Majuli, ASDMA said. The Brahmaputra was flowing above the danger mark at Nimatighat, the bulletin said.

A total of 3,13,712 domestic animals and poultry have also been affected in the deluge across 13 districts.

Relief Efforts

The bulletin said that the authorities are running 359 relief camps and distribution centres in 14 districts. A total of 80,398 people, including 12,855 children, are taking shelter in the same.

A total of 7,334 people have been evacuated so far from various flood-hit areas using boats and helicopters by the army, paramilitary forces, NDRF, SDRF, civil administration, trained volunteers, Fire and Emergency Services and locals.

The authorities have also distributed 7,077.56 quintals of rice, dal and salt, 6,020.90 litres of mustard oil, 2,218.28 quintals of cattle feed and other flood relief items.