NEW DELHI, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Over 700,000 people were affected by the ongoing floods across India's northeastern state of Assam as the death toll has risen to 51, local media reports said Friday.
According to officials, 900 villages in 11 districts across the state are reeling under the floods.
"The death toll from the flood fury in Assam has risen to 51, with as many as six more bodies recovered from Sivasagar and Charaideo in the past 24 hours," a local television news channel, Northeast Live said.
The state-run broadcaster All India Radio (AIR) said the flood situation remains critical in the upper Assam districts of Sivasagar, Charaideo and Jorhat, which together account for nearly 94 percent of the affected population.
"Sivasagar is the worst-affected district, with more than 375,000 people impacted and around 300 villages inundated," the broadcaster said. "More than 186,000 people are affected in Charaideo, while over 115,000 people have been affected in Jorhat."
Officials said 24,124 people have taken shelter in 103 relief camps, while 255 relief distribution centres have been set up for the affected.
Floods are an annual occurrence in Assam during the monsoon season. ■
