Brahmaputra, Tangni rivers flowing above danger level
| Date :24-Jul-2020 |
Villagers carry their belongings as they move to a safer place from a flood-affected area, in Morigaon, Assam on Thursday. (PTI)
GUWAHATI,
A LARGE number of people have been affected because of the worsening flood situation in Assam’s Darang and Sonitpur districts. With the Brahmaputra and the Tangni rivers flowing well above the danger level, several villages in the large rural region of the eastern province of Darang have been submerged. The floodwaters have destroyed crops and fishes from ponds have been swept away. People living in low-lying areas were forced to leave their homes.
The overflowing waters of the Saktola River have wreaked havoc in hundreds of villages of the Mangalde and Sipajhar Vidhan Sabha areas in the western province of Darang. “You can see the water of the river has come to my field, this water has spoiled everything along with my entire cultivation. We are living in a shortage of essentials; it is our appeal to the government to pay attention to us,” said one of the affected persons. The situation is the same in the Sonitpur district as well and a large number of people have been hit hard by the flood in the Borsola area. Expressing distress, a flood victim said, “My house is submerged for the past seven days and there is little help from the administration.
Sometimes we eat and sometimes we don’t.” “The floodwater has put us in a lot of trouble. We were already anguished by the COVID-19 lockdown and now the floods. All our food items have been swept away. Jute crop is completely destroyed. Farming lands are submerged in water, yet no government official has come here. Let’s see what happens, there are talks of the MLA coming to visit us tomorrow,” said another victim.
As many as 89 deaths and 56,27,389 people have been affected across 30 districts in Assam due to the floods,” said the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA). Assam CM inspects flood-affected areas: Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday inspected flood-affected areas and met the flood-hit people in Solmari and Rangia. “I am travelling across the flood-hit districts of Assam and ensuring that immediate relief works are undertaken and quality food items and facilities are provided at flood relief camps,” the Chief Minister said.
Floods wreak havoc in Bihar
PATNA,
July 23 (IANS)
FLOOD waters have now started entering new areas in Bihar, triggering fears of more loss of life and property. Almost 6.50 lakh people in 10 districts have been affected by the floods so far. Buildings in Gopalganj have all been submerged in water. The National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force are working non-stop to rescue people. Disaster Management Department Additional Secretary Ramchandra Doo said that the department is on alert in view of the increased water level in various rivers.
The rising water level has affected 55 blocks of 282 panchayats in the 10 districts of Sitamarhi, Shivhar, Supaul, Kishanganj, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, West Champaran, Khagaria and East Champaran. About six and a half lakh people have been badly affected by the floods. Doo said that relief camps are being run in Supaul, West Champaran, two each in East Champaran, three in Gopalganj and one in Khagaria.
Apart from this, 134 community kitchens are being run in the flood-affected areas. The Gandak river has caused much havoc in Gopalganj this year. Many villages in Sadar block have been submerged. Some children trapped in a madarasa were evacuated with the help of the district administration. The same situation is there in Darbhanga. Water has entered 81 panchayats in 10 blocks of Darbhanga.