
New Delhi: Incessant heavy rains throughout the week have led to flooding and landslides in Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and Manipur, resulting in loss of at least 14 lives. Train services, as well as normal life, have also been badly affected. In Assam alone, over three lakh people have so far been reeling under flood conditions, according to media reports from Guwahati.
Reports quoting Assam State Disaster Management Authority flood bulletin on June 15 said on the third day of the first wave of floods in the state, the number of flood-hit had been counted at 3,86,570 belonging to 668 villages of seven districts – Hojai, Cachar, Golaghat, Hailakhandi, Karimganj, Karbi Anglong (East) and Karbi Anglong (West).
Incidents of flooding have also been reported from some parts of the capital city of Guwahati. Reports of houses being damaged due to landslides have come from the Karbi Anglong districts. Road connectivity has also been disrupted due to washing away of bridges and parts of roads. Flooding of parts of the National Highway no. 37 in Bokakhat sub-division of Golaghat district has also been reported. The highway runs through the Kaziranga National Park.
Till June 15, 471 people marooned in the flood waters had been rescued by the state authorities. As many as 162 relief camps have been set up to provide shelter to those rendered homeless.
Local media reports on the morning of June 16 also stated that an unidentified body had been found floating in the flood waters in Assam’s Hojai district. This takes the death toll to flooding and landslides to five in the state.

Meanwhile, the Northeast Frontier Railway had to suspend as many as four trains on June 14 as the flood waters washed away a tunnel in the Lumding-Badarpur hill section of the state, leading to snapping of train services altogether to the Barak Valley as well as to neighbouring Tripura. The NF Railway PRO told reporters that work had been on to restart the train services as soon as possible.
While the ferry services have been stopped in Assam’s Barak Valley due to the rising level of the waters, the services continue in the Guwahati area till reports last came in.
In Tripura, over 15,000 people have been reportedly rescued so far from the flood-affected areas by National Disaster Response Force teams and brought to relief camps. Reports said three people have lost their lives so far. As many as 6,000 people are marooned in the state’s Khowai district alone. State chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb visited the badly affect Kailashshar sub-division this past June 15 where about 12,000 people have taken shelter in camps.
In Manipur, over 1.5 lakh people have reportedly been marooned in the Thoubal, Imphal East and Imphal West districts due to flash floods caused by perennial heavy rain. Six people, including three children, have lost their lives so far in related incidents. According to the state Relief and Disaster Management wing, the water level has been rising in these flood-affected districts besides affecting Bishnupur district.
Latest reports said 12,500 houses in 150 villages have been damaged including government offices and schools in these districts. In capital Imphal, various parts of the city have gone under water due to heavy rains, including the entry road to Raj Bhavan. State governor Najma Heptullah along with the Raj Bhavan staff has pledged a day’s salary for the relief work in the affected districts.

Reports said the state government has released an immediate relief assistance of Rs 3.2 crore for the flood-hit areas.
In Mizoram at least 10,66 families have so far been reportedly evacuated to safer places by the state Relief and Disaster Management department. The worst affected areas are Tlabung town and the adjoining areas of Lunglei district bordering Bangladesh. Most of the affected people have lost their homes due to landslides, which have swept away parts of the National Highway no. 54, snapping road connectivity of Serchip town to capital Aizawl. The Aizawl to Lunglei road connectivity has also been cut off due to heavy landslides.