Flood situation in Assam slowly easing, 5 more deaths reported, over 14 lakh still affected

Guwahati, July 11 (IANS) With a reduction in the intensity of rain during the past few days, the overall flood situation in Assam is slowly improving, even as five more people died in five districts on Wednesday and 14.38 lakh people remain affected in 27 of the state’s 35 districts, Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) officials said.However, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday forecast heavy rainfall over parts of central, northeast, and east India during the next few days.According to the ASDMA officials, the number of affected people has come down from over 24.20 lakh in 30 districts as on July 5.One drowning death each was reported from Dhubri, Dibrugarh, South Salmara, Dhemaji, and Cachar districts, taking the toll to 84.The ASDMA officials said that the flood water also inundated over 39,898 hectares of crop area in 2,580 villages in 27 districts while over 11.28 lakh domestic animals have also been badly affected.Out of the 27 flood-affected districts, Dhubri, Cachar, Barpeta, Darrang, Goalpara, Golaghat, Sivasagar, Majuli, and South Salmara are the worst hit.The Brahmaputra is flowing above the danger level at Neamatighat, Tezpur, Guwahati, and Dhubri, while Burhidihing, Disang, and Kushiyara rivers are also flowing above the danger level in many places.ASDMA officials also said that over 45,620 people are sheltered in the 365 relief camps opened by the district administrations, while 156 more relief distribution centres are functioning in different districts. Several National and State Disaster Response Forces teams, Fire and Emergency Service personnel, police forces, the AAPDA Mitra Volunteers of ASDMA and volunteers from various NGOs, have also been deployed for the rescue and relief operations.According to officials, the second wave of floods caused major damage to agricultural land and standing crops, fisheries, and infrastructure including roads, bridges and culverts. They said that road communication has been affected due to floods and surging waters washed away bridges and damaged roads and embankments.District administrations are providing food and other essential materials to the affected people.Like previous years, wild animals in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR) were largely affected by the flood as a large area of the park has been submerged and park authorities continued their efforts to rescue the animals and to prevent poaching. KNPTR Director Sonali Ghosh said that so far, 135 wild animals have been rescued while 163 animals, including deer, rhino, and hog deer, have drowned in flood waters.–IANSsc/vd