Approximately 300 villages are reeling under late monsoon flood water on Saturday in the districts of Lakhimpur, Majuli and Dhemaji in Northern Assam. Heavy rain over the past few days in areas of upper Assam and the adjacent hilly terrains of Arunachal Pradesh has inflated the water levels of the mighty Brahmaputra river and its north bank tributaries and inundated hundreds of villages across the three districts.
In Lakhimpur district, a total of 97 villages are affected by the surging water of the Brahmaputra river and its tributaries like the Subansiri, Ranganadi, Singora, Pava, and Dikrong. Although there are currently no reports of casualties or missing persons, tens of thousands of people and their livestock have been affected. Over 4,080 hectares of crops have been destroyed and in some places, schools and embankments are also damaged.
People's Action for Development has been active in the areas affected by flooding through a climate change adaptation and resilience project, headed by Project Coordinator Philipson Sona. "People in the flood-affected areas had anticipated flooding of this intensity, but it happened later than usual," he said. “Under our project, we have tried to support the people of these 10 villages by providing high-rise clay platforms, high-rise hand pumps for safe drinking water, search and rescue materials, first aid kits, and 5 country boats. Now we are happy that the communities are using these with their experience in this disastrous situation”, Sona added.
In Majuli, the rising water level of the Brahmaputra created catastrophic flooding in more than 95 villages of the district. This flood brings severe hardship to the people of the affected villages. In some places, road communication has been disrupted and roads, due to their elevated position above the surrounding land, have become the primary shelters for livestock in many parts of the district. The flood also ravages the growing up paddy cultivation in the district.
This most recent flooding has arrived towards the end of the monsoon season, which is significantly more damaging for farmers and their harvest than at other times of the year. Many farmers' paddy fields have been completely wiped out, and they will not be able to grow crops for some months while the sediment and other debris carried by the flooding is cleared from their fields.