India – 1 Dead, 34,000 Affected After Fresh Floods in Assam

Fresh floods have struck in the state of Assam over the last few days, with over 100 villages affeted and 1 fatality reported.

Millions of people have been affected by monsoon flooding in the state that began in May this year and continued over the following months.

By late July over 2.4 million people were affected across 2,265 villages and localities in 23 of the state’s 33 districts. According to India’s Disaster Management Division (DMD) 116 people have died as a result of flooding and 26 have died in landslides during this year’s monsoon.

As of early September much of the flooding had subsided. Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) reported on 10 September that no districts or people were affected anywhere in the state.

Since then heavy rainfall has caused a fresh spate of flooding, affecting over 100 villages in the 4 districts of Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Biswanath and Chirang in the east of the state. ASDMA reported on 14 September that almost 34,000 people were affected and reported one fatality in Biswanath. Over 4,000 hectares of crops were also submerged.

India’s Central Water Commission reported the Jiabharali (also known as Kameng) river in Sontipur District stood at 77.6 metres on 14 September, above the danger mark of 77 metres.