Guwahati, July 11: The Brahmaputra and its tributaries have wreaked widespread devastation in Assam with the current wave of floods claiming 16 lives and affecting nearly 19 lakh people in 20 districts of the state. The devastation caused by flood waters was unprecedented in recent years with nearly 3,000 villages inundated and more than 2,500 people rendered homeless, official sources said here today.
The Brahmaputra is flowing much above the danger level in most of the affected districts and the district administration has pressed engine boats into service to evacuate the flood victims to safer places. The state government has asked the Army to stand by for providing relief and rehabilitation to the affected people.
Heavy monsoon rainfall was continuing in the catchment areas raising the level of the rivers and creating havoc in the low-lying areas. The worst-affected Dhemaji district remains cut off from the rest of the state for nearly a month while vast areas are either submerged or breached.
The situation in neighbouring districts of Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, Dibrugarh and Tinsukia also remains critical with vast areas inundated and the Brahmaputra and its tributaries maintaining a rising trend. Bureau Report