26 districts of Assam are flooded in heavy rain along with landslides. 27.64 lakh people affected, So far 105 people have died here. There are about 18 thousand people in relief camps. Some people built tents and lived in high places
Flooded peoples were living in tents with plastic tarpaulin in high places, so that social distancing could be maintained. We have been taking shelter in relief camps during floods every year since 1998, but never felt so scared.
No wages due to Corona
Adalat Khan of Debriduwa village in Chhay district says, “I have been in a relief camp with children for the last one month. The fields and houses have been submerged in floods. Due to corona, you cannot go to work anywhere. If the government also does not help during such a crisis, we will die of hunger. The MLAs of the area did not come to take care. In the election, all parties come to ask for votes, because there are 8 thousand votes in Debriduva.
Mohammad Nayan Ali (47) of Sidhoni village in Barpeta district says, ‘The administration gave one kg of rice and 200 grams of dal per person only once in 15 days. After that no one came to know about our condition. One reason for more flooding in Barpeta district is being attributed to the water released from the Kurichu Hydropower Plant in Bhutan.
12 lakh people vulnerable to floods
About 739 villages in our district are affected by the floods. About 12 lakh people are vulnerable to floods. A total of 15 people have died. Bhutan has been releasing water continuously for 10 days. If he releases 1000 to 1500 cu secs of water daily then the situation will get worse. On the other hand, 96 animals have died in Kaziranga National Park due to floods. Out of the total 223 camps in the park, 99 camps have been submerged. Six camps have to be evacuated. It is not easy to bring such a large number of affected people to relief camps under the Corona Guideline. Still taking precautions.
40% of Assam flood affected, 50-60 lakh people affected every year
According to the National Flood Commission, 31 thousand 500 sq km of Assam is flood affected. That is, about 40% share is vulnerable. The main reason for this is that Assam is completely located on the river valley. Its total area is 78 thousand 438 sq km. Out of which 56 thousand 194 sq km is in the Brahmaputra river valley. And the remaining 22 thousand 244 sq km is in the Barak river valley.
Every year, Assam suffers a loss of about Rs 200 crore due to floods. There was a loss of 500 crores in the 1998 floods and Rs 771 crores in 2004. According to the Assam government, the state has suffered severe floods in 1954,1962, 1972, 1977, 1984, 1988, 1998, 2002 and 2004. Even after that, flood situation occurs three to four times every year.
In a state with a population of three and a half crores, 50-60 lakh people are affected every year. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 4 thousand 766 villages of the state have been badly affected by floods during 22 May to 15 July.
