With five more deaths, four of them children, in the last 24 hours, the Assam flood toll has gone up to 126.
Kolkata: Flood-hit Assam reported five more deaths in the past 24 hours, four of them children, taking the toll to 126 in the past week. The town of Silchar in the Cachar district has been under water for seven days now, with the floods leaving over 22 lakh people to suffer in the state.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), the five fatalities were reported from Barpeta, Cachar, Darrang, Karimganj, and Morigaon, CNBC TV18 reported.
People are complaining of helplessness as the floods have severely damaged their homes. Domestic animals and poultry have perished, and people have been without food and electricity for days, according to reports reaching here from the north-eastern state.
“Water from the river rushed in so quickly that in two hours it was above my head. It has been extremely difficult for us because my 90-year-old grandmother lives with me and my mom has diabetes. My father flew in from Kolkata, but the waters prevented him from entering our house. We literally have nothing to our name right now because all of our possessions were destroyed. We could manage some essentials and check into a hotel. To protect our house from burglars, my brother had to remain at home," Subhasri Bhattacharjee told ABP Live over the phone from Silchar.
She added: "We are grateful that the NDRF teams are providing some assistance to us. The NGOs have also been a huge help to us. But because the water entered so quickly, it became very challenging to reach the interiors. Even the media is now travelling up to here, and gradually more people are becoming aware of the crisis, but when it first occurred...there was nothing we could do. In the blink of an eye, everything got washed away."
No Power, Thefts On Rise, Rescue Ops On
With no electricity in the area, things are more challenging. People are trying to find shelter in refugee camps.
"The boat that saved us demanded Rs 5,000 for a trip of even just 1 kilometer, which a majority of the people could not afford. To survive, people left their homes carrying their children, newborn babies in tubs and baskets," said Subhasri, who has now taken shelter at a hotel in Silchar.
With incidents of theft also being reported, many people are afraid and unable to sleep at night.
"Currently, we are receiving food and assistance from citizens — medicine shops, NGOs, neighbors, and I am grateful for that. The deputy commissioner is doing a lot, and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa also paid us a visit yesterday, wading through the floodwaters on foot. So, a week later, things are now escalating. Perhaps this situation could have been avoided if it had been done sooner," said Subhasri.
Another flood victim, who did not wish to be named, narrated the ordeal of a child who lost his mother during the floods. Unable to carry out her final rites, he reportedly wrapped her body, wrote a letter and stuck it to the body, and threw it into the floodwaters as there was nothing else he could do. He prayed in the letter that anyone who finds the body should bury it or take it to the crematorium, the flood victim told ABP Live.
On Saturday, as many as 175 boats were pressed into service, even as the NDRF, the SDRF and Army personnel were on the job too, to rescue 5,724 marooned people, according to a Hindustan Times report. As many as 5,487 of these people were in the Cachar district alone, the report said.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) took at least 96 tonnes of relief material on Saturday to Assam and Meghalaya, ANI reported.
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