Assam Floods: After Bhutan Releases Water From Reservoir, Over 67,000 Affected In 17 Districts

With the discharge of water from Bhutan’s Kuricchu Dam on Friday, Assam was placed on high alert, affecting around 67,000 people. 17 districts were severely flooded as a result of major rivers like the Brahmaputra reaching dangerous amounts of water. 4,531 prisoners are staying in 78 relief camps and distribution centers that have been put up by the local authority.

According to the bulletin of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), 67,689 people were impacted on Friday as opposed to 41,000 the day before, however no deaths were recorded throughout the day and the current wave of floods’ death toll remained at seven.

Baksa, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Chirang, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Jorhat, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpuyt, Majuliu, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Tamulpur, and Tinsukia are among the districts that are impacted. The Beki, a river that runs through Assam’s Baksa and Barpeta districts and originates in Bhutan, was one of several rivers in the state that were running over the danger threshold.

Assam floods
Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Bhutan are expected to see severe rainfall in the next days, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). Dr. Nandita Dutta, the District Project Officer (DPO) for Barpeta, pleaded with residents to take the essential precautions.

The chief minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, had previously stated that surplus water is being carefully routed via the gates to restrict flow, but that the quantity of water released may not be a much given the improvement in the upstream neighboring countries. According to him, despite the Kurichu Dam’s discharge of extra water, the water level in all four of Lower Assam’s rivers is still below the danger limit.

2,770 hectares of crops were destroyed, and 49,535 animals were also harmed. In the districts of Barpeta, Chirang, Dhubri, Golaghat, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Sivasagar, and Sonitpur, 18 roads and an embankment were destroyed. The advisory also said that Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Sivasagar, and Tamulpur have all seen significant erosion.