Villagers wade through a flooded road in Nagaon district of India's northeastern state of Assam, on June 17, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
The flooding that hit India's Assam and Meghalaya had wreaked havoc in local areas, inundating thousands of villages, destroying crops, damaging houses and killing at least 170 people. The regional weather forecasting center in Guwahati showed Mawsynram in Meghalaya received 1,003.6 millimeters of rainfall between June 16 and June 17, the highest 24-hour rainfall recorded in the place.
by Peerzada Arshad Hamid
NEW DELHI, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Unprecedented rainfalls this month have triggered massive flooding and landslides in India's northeastern states of Assam and Meghalaya.
The flooding left behind a trail of destruction in the two states, inundating thousands of villages, destroying crops, damaging homes and killing at least 170 people.
According to local government officials in Assam, the floods hit 32 of its 35 districts affecting over 5.45 million people. So far 136 people have been killed and 37 others gone missing in floods and landslides across the state since mid-May incessant rains.
The heavy rains also lashed neighboring Meghalaya state, where at least 34 people have died and 11 others remained missing since April 1 due to landslides and floods, the State Disaster Management Authority in Meghalaya said.
Floods are an annual occurrence in Assam during the monsoon season. The state has a vast network of rivers which makes it prone to natural disasters like floods and erosion. The Brahmaputra and Barak rivers, the two major rivers of the state, have more than 50 tributaries that make Assam singularly different from other states in terms of flooding and magnitude of erosion.
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel rescue residents from flood-affected areas in Guwahati, city of India's northeastern state of Assam, on June 14, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) officials, the floods in May have hit 12 districts and killed 39 people as of June 1 in flooding and landslides in the state.
In mid-June, the situation turned grim when incessant rains hit the state afresh, triggering flooding in 32 districts.
People in low-lying areas had to abandon their houses and take refuge either with their relatives or at government-run shelters. People in the towns found themselves trapped inside buildings with water around them.
Locals complained of a shortage of food and drinking water, besides their inability to access healthcare facilities in the flooded areas.
With localities inundated, roads remain waterlogged. Young men and women were seen wading through waters up to their waist, leaving their homes and fetching groceries.
"This is for the first time in my life I have seen such huge flooding," said Abdul Gafoor, a local in Kamrup district. "We have erected a makeshift tent along the roadside by fastening a plastic sheet to save ourselves. There is a shortage of drinking water in the camp and it was crowded."
Rickshaw pullers wade through a flooded street after rains in Guwahati, city of India's northeastern state of Assam, on June 14, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Records at the regional weather forecasting center in Guwahati showed Mawsynram in Meghalaya received 1,003.6 millimeters of rainfall between June 16 and June 17, which was the highest 24-hour rainfall recorded in Mawsynram.
Officials said even by Mawsynram's standards, the rainfall was extreme
Between June 1 and June 22, Meghalaya received 161 percent more rain-- 1,314.4 millimeters of rainfall against the normal rainfall of 503.1 millimeters.
State disaster management authority said the rains have damaged over 4,000 houses and hit a population of over half a million in 930 villages of 11 affected districts in the state. The deluge has damaged major highways and key connecting roads in rural parts and bridges.
The local government has asked the federal government for financial assistance of 3 billion Indian rupees (38.3 million U.S. dollars) to carry out reconstruction.
"The rain has been unprecedented, in some areas, it has broken records of the past 40 years," Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said in a statement.
In the vicinity of the mighty Brahmaputra river, floods often wreak havoc on the lives and livelihoods of millions living near the fertile riverbanks in Assam. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced by heavy flooding.
Villagers move from a flood-affected area to a safer place in Hojai district of India's northeastern state of Assam, on June 18, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Last week, in the Darrang district over 4,600 people were living in relief camps. Floodwaters blocked major roads and prevented trucks from taking supplies to those who were struggling to survive amid increasing water levels.
Binta Rajbangshi and her daughter, who were now staying in Darrang relief camp for the past four days, were forced to flee their home when water flooded the house.
"I have barely slept during my stay here. I have got infected with the floodwater," she said.
There are thousands like her suffering from the floods in the state. The relief center where Rajbangshi stayed provides food to over 700 families.
Guwahati, the main city and economic hub of Assam, presents an image of a ruined place. Fields that used to be lush with rice and paddy have turned into vast swamps of mud and debris.
The flood situation in Silchar town in Assam's Cachar district continued to remain grim with several areas still being submerged under five feet to eight feet of water for the seventh consecutive day. Nearly 200,000 residents in the region were in lack of food, water and other essentials. ■
