Bhutan rainfall rings flood alert in Assam districts

A forecast about heavy to very heavy rainfall in Bhutan in the next 48-hours triggered flood alerts in at least five districts in western Assam, situated in the downstream of the Himalayan neighbour.

Rising water in some rivers in Chirang, Baksa, Kokrajhar and South Salmara districts in Assam inundated some areas following heavy rains reported on the hills of Bhutan and in those districts too, on Wednesday.

The daily flood bulletin of Assam State Disaster Management Authority said over 2,000 people were affected by floods in eight villages under Bijni circle in Chirang district. More than 550 people had taken shelter in a relief camp in Bijni. One bridge and a stretch of road were damaged by flood waters in Bijni.

Another 2,300 people were affected by floods in Jorhat district in eastern Assam too. The Brahmaputra and Jia Bharali rivers were flowing above the danger level at Nematighat in Jorhat and in Sonitpur districts respectively, on Wednesday, said the bulletin.

"All district disaster management authorities and the district administration has been asked to remain alert and carry out rescue and relief measures as per requirement. Apart from Monsoon rains in Assam, rainwater flowing down from the Bhutan hills cause flash floods and sudden rise in water level in eastern Assam districts," said an official here.

The National Centre for Hydrology and Meteorology, Bhutan issued a forecast on Tuesday informing residents that heavy to very heavy rains is likely to occur in the Southern and Eastern parts of the country.

A two-day consultation organised by Oxfam India and NERSWN, a Kokrajhar-based NGO on June 20 and 21 in Kokrajhar expressed concern and issued a call of action to reduce the impact of flood waters and siltation flowing down from Bhutan on the lives and livelihood of residents, mainly farmers in western Assam districts.

The Regional Meteorological Centre based here at Borjhar also issued a warning on Wednesday about extremely heavy rainfall over Bongaigaon, Chirang, Baksa and Udalguri districts in Western Assam. Similar alert about heavy to very heavy rainfall was also issued for Dhubri, South Salmara, Kokrajhar, Goalpara, Barpeta, Kamrup, Nalbari, Darrang, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Dima-Hasao and Sonitpur districts in Assam.