GUWAHATI, July 16 ? The overall flood situation remains grim even today in the State. Today was the twenty-third day of the second wave of the floods hitting the State. The current wave of floods has affected 88,26,851 people in 7,311 villages in the State?s 26 districts, said the official flood bulletin here this evening. The death toll has shot up to 49 today. Meanwhile, the Brahmaputra has posed a serious threat to the Palasbari-Chaygaon areas by eroding away about 300 metres of the Palasbari-Gumi dyke today. The Brahmaputra is flowing above the Danger Level (DL) at Dibrugarh (0.94 metres), Neamatighat (0.13 metres), Guwahati (0.21 metres) and Goalpara (0.47 metres). But except at Neamatighat it is maintaining a falling trend. At Neamatighat the river is maintaining a rising trend, said the Central Water Commission (CWC) evening flood bulletin here.
The two tributaries of the Brahmaputra ? Puthimari and the Dhansiri (S) are also maintaining rising trend while the other tributaries are maintaining either falling or steady trends at places. The tributaries of the Brahmaputra still flowing above the DL are ? Burhidihing, Jiabhrali, Puthimari, Kopilli, Sonkosh and Dhansiri (S). The Brahmaputra is flowing above the Warning Level (WL) at Tezpur (0.46 metres). Its tributaries Burhidihing and Subansiri, along with the Dhansiri at Golaghat, are also flowing above the WL, said the CWC bulletin. The Barak and the Kushiyara are also flowing above the DL, the bulletin of the CWC said.
Reports from some areas suggesting improvement in the condition have been received, while the reports from most of the other areas suggest that there is no improvement in the overall flood situation. Meanwhile, allegations of inadequate or no supply of relief materials from many areas are pouring in. The Dhubri District unit of the Congress has alleged that the affected people of the villages and char areas of the district received relief materials in the form of rice and dal yesterday only, that is, after six days of the disaster. The affected people of the towns of Dhubri and Gauripur could receive rice, dal and salt after five days of the disaster, said a memorandum of the Dhubri district committee of the Congress to the Chief Minister today.
It also alleged that there was no supply of drinking water, fodder, baby food and medicines in the flood-hit areas, said the Congress district unit. About ten hand pumps have been installed at the relief camps in Dhubri and Gauripur, while there is no supply of kerosene and cooking gas to the affected people at the Government recommended prices. People have been procuring kerosene from the open market at Rs 25/30 a litre, said the Congress district unit in its memorandum. The All Assam Students? Union (AASU) has alleged this evening that its chief organising secretary Inamul Haque was arrested by the Hatsingimari Police today for protesting inadequate or no supply of relief materials to the flood-hit people. The students? body demanded his immediate release and adequate supply of relief materials to the affected people.
Our Correspondents report:
Palasbari: About 300 metres of the Palasbari-Gumi dyke was washed away by the Brahmaputra today posing a serious threat to the entire Palasbari-Chaygaon area. It is worth mentioning here that about one lakh people who have been rendered homeless by the incessant erosion of the Brahmaputra in the area for years together, have been staying on the dyke. All efforts by the authorities and the local people to check the erosion have been proved futile by the mighty river. The authorities have put up a retirement bundh with sand-filled bags as a means to save the area from the wrath of the mighty river. Local people allege that the measures adopted by the authorities concerned to save the areas from erosion for the past several years were of temporary nature and there was no permanent step to resist the erosion of the river in the area. Today Minister of State for Planning and Development Himanta Biswa Sarma and DC Kamrup, SK Sinha visited the erosion-affected areas to take stock of the situation. The Minister told the media persons that the Government had prepared a Rs 14-crore scheme to check erosion in the area permanently. Work on the scheme will start in September, he said. Meanwhile, the State Government has released an amount of Rs 3.92 crore for checking the erosion with boulder caging, the Minister said. It needs mention that if the Brahmaputra continues its unabated erosion in the area, the NH 37 will soon be facing a serious threat.
Goreswar: The situation has turned grim again today in Rangiya sub-division. The Puthimari is fuming in all its fury. The floodwaters of the river inundated new areas breaching its embankment at Bagaribari village yesterday.
Barpeta: The situation in the district turned to be worse today. The Beki has changed its course and has taken a turn towards the east. This development concerning the river has raised fears among the local people that their area may be turned into a Majuli-like island. The river has created a gap of about seven kilometres around the area.
Rangiya: Irate people today ransacked the office of an Executive Magistrate and physically assaulted him on issues concerning non-availability of relief materials. Rangiya Police arrested six youths as a measure to prevent further trouble. Viral fever and dysentery and other contagious diseases have been affecting the people of the flood-affected areas, while prices of essential items are soaring high.
Nalbari: The situation has turned critical in the district again. The floodwaters of the Pagladiya have inundated new areas under Batahgila Mouza. The river has by this time changed its course flowing through the breached portion of its embankment in Dhantola area. Meanwhile, the death toll during the current wave of floods in the district has gone up to 13 with reports of four children drowning in Bhanganmari Char under Mukalmuwa Police Station yesterday. Infectious diseases have also started taking the toll in the flood-hit areas of the district. So far, three persons have died of diarrhoea in the district. Fifteen persons have been reported suffering from the disease at Namati viallage.
Dibrugarh: The Buri Dehing river has breached the ring bund at Goroimari under the Khowang development block in the Dibrugarh district this morning, inundating fresh areas. The affected villages are Gergeri, Dalanipar, Borbeel, and Khalihamari Gaon. The river has also breached another ring bund at Kowaimari under Borboruah development block this morning. One house has been washed away at Kowaimari today.
Jorhat: In an effort to optimise distribution of relief material in flood-affected areas of Majuli and Teok subdivisions within Jorhat district, six speed boats have been assigned and are expected to arrive here soon, the deputy commissioner J Shamala Rao informed. Meanwhile, the Dergaon MLA and Urban Areas Development Minister Hem Prakash Narayan, who has been assigned responsibility of monitoring flood relief measures in Jorhat district, has been regularly discussing strategies with the concerned officials in regard to streamlining services. On the other hand, the Teok MLA Member Gogoi and his Majuli counterpart Rajib Lochan Pegu too have been supervising distribution of aid to the marooned people in their respective constituencies.