Assam floods death toll rises to 87: State govt

After two more persons lost their lives in a flood-related incident in Assam, the death toll in the state rose to 87 on Tuesday, said Assam government officials.

"Two more people have lost their lives in the floods in the state, taking the total death toll to 87," said the Government of Assam, Assam State Disaster Management Authority.

According to the state government, a total of 24,19,185 people have been affected in 24 districts of the state due to the floods.

Earlier on Tuesday, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal reviewed the COVID-19 situation and flood scenario with the district administration of Goalpara.

The Chief Minister directed officials to create awareness regarding Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) among farmers while expediting relief measures to those affected by the Assam floods.

Prior to that, he had also inspected flood and erosion caused by the Aie River at Tulsi Jhora in Chirang district.

"Several parts of Chirang district are facing floods & erosion. Relief work is going on 24x7. This morning, inspected flood and erosion affected areas near the Aie river at Tulsijhora and directed officials to take necessary measures on a war-footing," tweeted Sonowal after his inspection of the flood-affected area.

The flood situation in Assam remains critical with most of the rivers including the Brahmaputra flowing menacingly above the danger mark. The water level of the Barak River, which flows through the Cachar district in the state, too, has been on the rise in recent days.

The floods have affected 24 districts, damaging 1,09,600.53 hectares of crops and affected over 24 lakh people in the state, according to the flood situation report by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority. It added that the rising water levels have affected a total of 2,254 villages.

The government has set up 276 relief camps and 192 relief distribution centres across the districts to help the people affected by the floods in the state.

( With inputs from ANI )