Kolkata: As Assam begins to rebuild from the devastating floods, help has been received from unexpected corners — among them, Kolkata, where students, NGOs, and citizens have turned empathy into action.The floods left behind wreckage and despair, triggering a humanitarian crisis that tested the state’s capacity to respond. While official relief tried to keep pace, citizens from Kolkata — university students, social workers, and volunteers — mobilised donations, packed supplies, and travelled hundreds of km to reach stranded families in upper Assam.Among the first to respond from Kolkata was the Anti‑Hunger Squad Foundation, led by Zeeshan Majid, which partnered with Khalsa Aid International to carry out relief work in Nepali Hiloni Khuti, Sivasagar, between Aug 12 and 17. After assessing conditions on the ground, the team identified food and clean drinking water as the most urgent needs. Within days, they arranged a water tanker and began distributing freshly prepared meals.“We saw that several organisations were already providing ration and hygiene kits,” Majid said, adding, “Fresh meals and clean water were the right ways for us to contribute.”In Kolkata, students at Jadavpur University were holding meetings, collecting funds, and planning their own relief mission. Rijupalika Mukherjee, a fourth‑year history student, said students raised Rs 1.58 lakh, organised donation drives, and formed volunteer teams. On Aug 13, nine of them set out for Assam, travelling through Sivasagar, Nimai Jan, and Bihubar, and distributing food, medicines, and clothes.At Gankpatty in Sivasagar, Baishali Gogoi, a dentist, 30, spent nearly Rs 40,000 from her savings on the first day of the floods.“People climbed on trees and roofs of their houses, some even hanging on to the false ceiling,” she recalled.To draw attention to the crisis, Gogoi began posting Instagram reels — glimpses of life amid the floodwaters. Her posts showed her leading relief drives in villages, distributing food, water, medicines, utensils, and inner garments for women. Her appeals reached ‘Shopner Alpana’, a Kolkata‑based student collective, which donated Rs 20,000 to get tents, food, and inner garments.The Breakthrough Science Society, headquartered on Creek Lane in Kolkata, also started collecting funds and materials through camps operating from Silchar.
