Guwahati (Assam) [India] June 6 : The flood situation in Morigaon district of Assam has shown a slight improvement, but the district is still struggling, with 117 villages remaining submerged on Friday.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), the floodwaters have affected over 5.60 lakh people across 19 districts in the state.
Earlier, it was reported that the flood situation in Assam has reached a critical point. In the Sribhumi district, many houses and commercial areas were inundated, leading to the disruption of normal life.
Reports from Baatgram in the North Sribhumi area reflected the extent of the devastation.
While speaking to ANI on Thursday, a villager from Baatgram described the situation, saying, "My house has submerged, and we have been living on the road for the past 3-4 days. The water level is rising."
Additionally, it was reported that around 60 per cent of Assam's Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, home to the country's highest density of one-horned rhinoceroses, has been submerged due to flooding caused by rising waters from the Brahmaputra River, threatening the habitat of the endangered animal species.
According to sanctuary authorities, 10 out of 17 anti-poaching camps inside the 16 sq km protected area have been inundated, severely affecting forest operations and forcing wildlife, including the iconic species, to move to higher ground."
"After June 1, we have received a significant influx of water from the Brahmaputra through channels linked to the sanctuary," said Pranjal Baruah, Ranger of Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, to ANI."Floodwaters have also entered via the Kopili River through the Goronga Beel, causing between 60 and 80 per cent of the sanctuary to be submerged," he added.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), this year's floods have claimed 12 lives, with five more deaths attributed to landslides. On Tuesday alone, six more people, including two children, drowned in floodwaters.
The ASDMA reported one death each in the Hailakandi, Sribhumi, Morigaon, Cachar, Sonitpur, and Tinsukia districts, while one person was reported missing in Cachar. It has affected over 6.33 lakh people across 21 districts in the state, including Hailakandi, Nagaon, Sribhumi, Kamrup, Hojai, Lakhimpur, Morigaon, Cachar, Golaghat, Dibrugarh, Barpeta, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Dhemaji, Majuli, Karbi Anglong West, Darrang, Sivasagar, Tinsukia, Dima-Hasao, and Jorhat.
Currently, 1506 villages under 69 revenue circles are submerged, with 14,739.33 hectares of crop area inundated. Sribhumi district is the worst affected, with 2,31,536 people impacted, followed by Nagaon (99,819), Cachar (89,344), Hailakandi (78,038), and Lakhimpur (43,651), as per ASDMA. Over 2.57 lakh people are sheltering in 511 relief camps and distribution centres across flood-hit areas. Additionally, 494,132 domestic animals have also been affected in the ongoing crisis, and floodwaters washed away 151 animals on Tuesday.
Teams from NDRF, SDRF, Fire and Emergency Services, Civil Defence, and trained volunteers are conducting rescue and relief operations. On Tuesday alone, 863 flood-affected individuals were rescued from various areas.