Dibrugarh: “Whatever we saw on television, the reality is far worse.” With those words, chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma summed up the scale of destruction he witnessed on Monday during a ground visit to flood-hit Nepalikhuti, a village straddling the Sivasagar-Nagaland border.During his visit, he pledged full govt support to rebuild shattered lives.Roads remained buried under silt and debris from the July 19 floods, forcing Sarma to travel by tractor to Nepalikhuti in Sivasagar’s Bihubor area. He was accompanied by ministers Bimal Bora, Keshab Mahanta and Pijush Hazarika.Sarma met families who have lost homes, farmland, livestock and, in some cases, family members. He also reviewed food, drinking water, medical care and compensation needs at relief camps.“The devastation is beyond imagination. We will do everything possible to help the people and rebuild these villages,” Sarma said. Officials were directed to expedite damage assessments and compensation.Hazarika said restoring food and drinking water supplies was the priority, while breached embankments in Demow and Nazira were being reinforced.Earlier, Sarma announced a nearly Rs 112-crore interim package, providing Rs 15,000 each through direct benefit transfer to about 75,000 families in Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat and Golaghat. Disbursement will continue until Aug 5.The govt allocated Rs 2 lakh each for flood-damaged schools and Anganwadi centres.Sarma said transformer repairs reduced the number of consumers without electricity in Sivasagar by nearly 58% in 24 hours.
