Assam Floods: Death Toll Rises to 41 as Worst Deluge in 60 Years Hits Eastern Districts
The ongoing floods in several eastern districts of Assam have become the worst in six decades, with the death toll rising to 41 after 10 more fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours, the state government said on Wednesday.
According to a late-night bulletin from the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), floodwaters claimed 10 lives across five districts. The number of affected districts decreased from 16 to 11, but the scale of devastation remains severe.
The floods have impacted 6,53,164 people across 939 villages and damaged crops on 24,897.27 hectares of land. Authorities have set up 106 relief camps, sheltering 24,418 people, an ASDMA spokesperson said.
Assam Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika, responding to a discussion in the state assembly, described the situation in Sivasagar, Charaideo, and Jorhat districts as unprecedented. “These areas rarely experience floods of this magnitude,” he said, adding that a cloudburst in neighbouring Nagaland's Mon district triggered a massive inflow of water, catching local authorities off guard. The cloudburst on July 19 caused multiple landslides in Nagaland, killing at least nine people.
“These areas are witnessing such a devastating flood in more than 60 years. This is a natural calamity of an unprecedented scale,” Hazarika said.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who toured affected districts on Wednesday, said more than 8 lakh people have been affected so far. “The areas that normally experience high floods every year are not affected much this time. We have to get to the bottom of the problem and discuss with Nagaland how to deal with it,” he said, noting the damage has been on an “unimaginable scale.”
The worst-affected districts remain Sivasagar, Charaideo, and Jorhat. Of the 41 total deaths, 25 have occurred in these three districts: 13 in Sivasagar, five in Charaideo, and one in Jorhat. The remaining 16 deaths were reported from Golaghat, Dhemaji, Karbi Anglong, and Sonitpur districts.
The India Meteorological Department has forecast moderate to heavy rainfall with thunderstorms in Guwahati and other districts over the next four days. It warned of aggravated waterlogging, flooding, flash floods, slow vehicular movement, and an increased risk of localised landslides in vulnerable areas.
