The death toll in Assam in the current flood rose to 30 on Wednesday with 14 bodies recovered from worst-affected Goalpara and Kamrup (rural) districts even as relief and rescue work continued round-the-clock.
Six bodies were recovered from Bolbola and Krishnai areas of Goalpara taking the total death toll so far to 14 in the district, where army, NDRF and SDRF are conducting rescue operation, a senior district administration official said.
Another eight bodies were recovered from neighbouring Kamrup(Rural) district, where the toll rose to 10. Four others are still missing, Deputy Commissioner J Balaji said.
Goalpara district administration sources said 94 relief camps have been set up by the district administration and more than 90,000 people have taken shelter in them.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday called up Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to take stock of the flood situation in the state. Gogoi apprised him about the slew of steps initiated by the state government to rescue the marooned people in the flood-hit areas. He also asked the home minister to raise the ex-gratia amount to the next of kin of those who died and sustained injuries and enhanced central assistance for damaged houses and crop land.
Assam Agriculture Minister Nilamoni Sen Deka and Forest Minister Rakibul Hussain have been deputed by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to review the prevailing situation in the district and coordinate the relief and rescue operations, an official spokesman said.
The ministers have announced that the state government would provide ex-gratia payment of Rs 3.5 lakh to the next of kin of those who
In Kamrup (rural) rescue operations were on and the situation was improving gradually with no rains since Tuesday. Balaji said road communication between Nagarberra and Hekra was affected as a concrete bridge was washed away on Tuesday.
Traffic along NH 37 has resumed but they were moving very slowly as several parts of it are still submerged, he added.
Situation in Guwahati, which falls in Kamrup (metro) district, was improving slowly though the severely affected areas of Anil Nagar, Nabin Nagar, Tarun Nagar, Rajgarh besides Zoo Road in the heart of the city are still under water, a spokesman of the district administration said.
Flood water from neighbouring Meghalaya inundated Betkuchi, Bashishta Chariali, Katahbari and Gorchuk localities of Guwahati along NH 37, the spokesman said.
All government and private educational institutions in and around the city remained closed for the third consecutive day on Wednesday.
In Kamrup (metro), five people have died so far while in Dhubri district a child was killed by landslide at Hatisinghmari on September 22.
A population of nearly four lakh have been affected in 12 districts by the current wave of flood which has inundated 415 villages and nearly 9,000 hectares of crop area, a Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) release said.
The affected districts are Goalpara, Kamrup Metro, Kamrup Rural, Dhemaji, Barpeta, Udalguri, Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, Nalbari, Morigaon, Sonitpur, Darrang and Lakhimpur.
Additional Inputs: PTI
