Guwahati, 5 June

Assam's flood situation remained grim on Thursday, with nearly seven lakh people affected in 21 districts and the water level of major rivers showing a rising trend, officials said.

The death toll in the first wave of the floods and landslides rose to 19, with two deaths reported on Wednesday. One person went missing in the Cachar district.

Nine major rivers, including the Brahmaputra at three places, were flowing above the danger level across the state, while River Barak was flowing above the danger mark in the Cachar district, and its tributaries were also showing a rising trend, with some rivers flowing above the red mark.

The current wave of floods has affected 1,494 villages in 66 revenue circles, the highest of 339 villages in Sribhumi, 189 in Nagaon, 166 in Cachar and 156 in Hailakandi districts.

Sribhumi is the worst affected since a population of 2,59,601 reeling under flood water, followed by Hailakandi with 1,72,439 and Nagaon with 1,02,716, according to the bulletin of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).

The total crop area under flood water till now is 14977.99 hectares. Around 5,15,737 animals have been affected.

The district authorities have opened 405 relief camps where 41,317 inmates have taken shelter. They have also opened 1,12,324 relief distribution centres.

Damage to roads, bridges, educational institutions, Anganwadi centres, electricity poles and other infrastructure was reported from various parts of the state.

The affected districts are Hailakandi, Dibrugarh, Morigaon, Hojai, Kamrup, Nagaon, Golaghat, Biwanath, Cachar, Sribhumi, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Darrang, Barpeta, Goalpara, South Salmara, Karbi Anglong West, Dima Hasao, Sivasagar, Kamrup (Metro) and Dhemaji.

A Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) spokesperson said train services in various parts of southern Assam have been affected due to the rising water level at the railway tracks and waterlogging at washing pits, particularly in Silchar.

Railway personnel are working round-the-clock to clear the tracks, the spokesperson said.

Some short-distance passenger trains have been cancelled. But long-distance trains are operating, the spokesperson added.