Guwahati, June 17: Incessant rain, flash floods and landslides in the past 48 hours has wreaked havoc in the north-eastern states, claiming a total of 17 lives. Heavy rainfall has brought normal life to a standstill, rendering thousands homeless across the region.
In Assam, flood situation flood situation worsened on Saturday as four more people lost their lives, taking the death toll in the northeastern region to 17. Meanwhile, the situation improved marginally in Tripura and Mizoram in the past 24 hours.
The India Meteorological Department daily report said the monsoon was hovering over Maharashtra in the west and parts of Odisha, West Bengal and Assam in east and northeast India.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), four persons lost their lives in flood and landslide related incidents during the last 24 hours. The ASDMA further informed that heavy rainfall triggered landslide at Mahur, Harangajao and Maibang under Haflong revenue circle in Dima Hasao, where one person lost his life. According to a report by PTI, while two people died at Sadar and Lakhipur revenue circles in Cachar district, one person lost his life at Lanka in Hojai, it added.
Earlier this week, at least two villagers were swept away by strong river currents in Tripura, while over 14,000 lost their homes as the downpour submerged parts of the state, an official of State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said. The state has declared a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the next of kin of those killed in the flash floods. In Manipur, the state government had declared "holiday" in the last week at all educational establishments and government offices in Imphal and its adjoining districts in view of the flood situation, an official release said.
According to a report by PTI, the ASDMA said over 4.25 lakh people have been affected in Assam's Hojai, Karbi Anglong East, Karbi Anglong West, Golaghat, Karimganj, Hailakandi and Cachar districts. Karimganj has been the worst hit with over 1.95 lakh people affected by floods, followed by Hailakandi with almost 1.89 lakh people. The ASDMA informed that currently, 716 villages are under water and 3,292 hectares of crop areas have been damaged.
ASDMA said authorities are running 213 relief camps and distribution centres in five districts, where 1,00,010 people have taken shelter. Landslides have taken place at three locations in Guwahati city, but no casualties have been reported so far. In Manipur, one person died in Imphal West district, official sources said. However, the intensity of rainfall decreased in Imphal this morning, but the situation was yet to improve in the valley districts of Thoubal, Imphal West and Bishnupur, they said.
A report issued by the Relief and Disaster Management Department noted, adding that more than 1.8 lakh people have been affected by the floods while the number of damaged houses across the state has increased to 22,624.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 17, 2018 10:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).