Floods and landslips have so far claimed the lives of 12 people in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam while at least nine are missing in these two States since May 14.
Officials in Arunachal Pradesh said that at least five persons died and several were injured following landslips in two areas of State capital Itanagar since May 15 night.
Rains and soggy conditions delayed the rescue operations but the personnel of the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force and other agencies managed to save six persons, including two women, from the debris at the two locations.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu mourned the loss of lives and advised people living along the banks of rivers and streams and landslip-prone areas to take precautionary measures.
“The district administration has identified and earmarked buildings as temporary relief camps and people in vulnerable places may either shift there or other places till the situation returns to normal,” he said.
In Assam, floodwaters killed one person in Udalguri district on Tuesday and two others in Cachar district on Monday while another person died in a landslip in Lakhimpur district. At least three people died in a landslip in Dima Hasao district, taking the death toll to seven while an equal number of people are reported missing in flood-hit Cachar district.
An update provided by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) on Tuesday said the State received an average rainfall of 592.6 mm from March 1 to May 16.
Almost incessant heavy rainfall over the last 72 hours has led to flooding in 26 districts of Assam, mostly in the central and western part of the State. So far, 4.03 lakh people have been affected across 1,089 villages and some urban centres with 1,227 houses fully and 5,262 houses partially damaged.
“Apart from 89 relief distribution centres, we have set up 89 relief camps across the flood-affected districts where 39,558 people have moved in,” an ASDMA spokesperson said.
Officials said floodwaters have affected 32,994.52 hectares of cropland and three rivers _ Kopili, Barak and Kushiyara _ are flowing above the danger mark.
In Dima Hasao district, road and train communication continues to be disrupted. “We are trying our best to restore train services, but the quantum of damage is too high to be addressed within a short time,” a Northeast Frontier Railway officer said.
Heavy rainfall has also caused extensive damage to roads and other infrastructure in Meghalaya with at least one steel bridge having been swept away in the Garo Hills region of the State. An iron bridge in western Assam’s Tamulpur district was also washed away.
