GUWAHATI: The flood situation in Assam remained grim with the death toll rising to 98 after one more fatality was reported, even as the number of affected districts fell to 13 and the number of people impacted by the deluge declined to 1.55 lakh, according to an official bulletin.The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said the latest death was reported from the Mahmora revenue circle in Charaideo district.Thirteen districts — Sivasagar, Golaghat, Nagaon, Hojai, Sonitpur, Dhemaji, Darrang, Biswanath, Kamrup (M), Lakhimpur, Udalguri, Jorhat and Charaideo — continued to remain affected by floodwaters, impacting 33 revenue circles and 464 villages.According to news agency PTI, the total number of people affected by the floods stood at 1,55,849, with Golaghat being the worst-hit district, where 58,750 people remained affected, followed by Sivasagar with 48,286 and Jorhat with 25,259.On Thursday, 15 districts and more than 1.68 lakh people were affected by the floods.The administration was operating 55 relief camps, where over 10,000 displaced people were taking shelter. Another 18 relief distribution centres were also functioning.The Dhansiri river was flowing above the danger mark at Golaghat town and Numaligarh in Golaghat district, while the Kushiyara river was above the danger level in Sribhumi district.As many as 10,748.64 hectares of crop area remained submerged, while more than 47,000 animals were affected.The bulletin also reported damage to infrastructure, including roads, bridges and houses, across the affected districts.Meanwhile, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday that his government will conduct a door-to-door assessment of flood damage in the four worst-affected districts from August 9 to 30.He assured that no affected household would be left out and said the government would provide the maximum relief permissible under existing norms.“Concluded an extensive training meeting with officials from the 4 districts affected by #AssamFloods. From 9 to 30 August, our teams will undertake a door-to-door assessment of damage,” Sarma said in a social media post after chairing a meeting with the officials of Jorhat, Sivasagar, Charaideo and Golaghat districts.He directed district commissioners, co-district commissioners and circle officers to adopt a compassionate approach and ensure that no affected household is left out.“Officers concerned will upload images of the damage on a dedicated app. Thereafter, an assessment will be made by August 30, followed by re-verification with affected families,” Sarma said.The chief minister maintained that the “guiding principle is clear, assess every genuine loss and provide the maximum relief permissible under existing norms”.(With agency inputs)
