Assam flood toll rises to 78, situation remains grim; Arunachal, Nagaland brace for heavy rains

Guwahati: The death toll in the floods in Assam rose to 78 with the situation still grim on Thursday even as water receded from most parts of the state. PTI reports quoted officials stating that over 3 lakh people continued to reel under the deluge.

The ordeal is far from over, if the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast is any indication. The weather department has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms at isolated places across Assam and the neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland over the next three days, raising concerns for districts bordering the two states.

"There was no rain in most of the flood-hit Upper Assam districts. So, water level continued to recede from the inundated villages, giving some respite to villagers," an official of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said.

The authority's daily flood bulletin issued on Wednesday night said three deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, including two from Sivasagar district and one from Golaghat. With these, the toll in this year's flood has reached 78.

Altogether 3,00,031 people remained affected, with Charaideo being the worst-hit with 1,37,561 people impacted, followed by Sivasagar (84,600) and Jorhat (49,911).

More than 16,500 displaced people were taking shelter in 71 relief camps. Another 30 relief distribution centres were catering to over 72,000 people.

Multiple agencies, including medical and veterinary teams, remained pressed in rescue operations in the affected areas.

A crop area of 21,523.08 hectares remained submerged. More than 11,000 animals have been washed away, while another 17,000 have been affected.

Damage to various infrastructure, including embankments, houses, roads, schools and other public property, was also reported from various parts, the ASDMA bulletin added.

Meanwhile, the IMD has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall along with thunderstorms from July 30 to August 1 at isolated places across Assam and parts of Arunachal Pradesh, which may affect the Assam districts of Tinsukia, Dhemaji and Lakhimpur.

The ASDMA urged people of the districts concerned to take all necessary precautions and remain vigilant, and said the status of the situation would be updated on its official website and on all its social media handles from time to time for general awareness.

(With PTI inputs)