Tracks flooded, lakhs stranded as flood toll in Assam crosses 100 - Situation said to be worst since 1998

Sumir Karmakar, TT, Guwahati, Aug. 14: Assam's flood toll has crossed 100 with four more persons reported dead in the past 24 hours.Sources said the body of a woman, who was reported missing since Saturday, was found today while two other persons remained untraced in Dhubri district. Two persons died in Morigaon and one in Golaghat.

Train services between the Northeast and the rest of the country continued to be affected as railway tracks near Delta and Sudhani stations under Katihar division in Bihar remained submerged, prompting the Railway Board to halt trains till 10am on Wednesday.

At least 16 trains were cancelled today and another 19 have been cancelled tomorrow, leaving many stranded in Bihar and in Assam.Samarjit Haldar, a businessman from Ranaghat in Bengal's Nadia district, who came to Nagaon in central Assam on Tuesday for work, said, "I had reservation on Kamrup Express for Nabadwip (in Bengal) yesterday morning but the train was cancelled. It was cancelled today too. I am running out of money and there is no word from railway officials when train services will resume."

The chief public relations officer of Northeast Frontier Railways, Pranav Jyoti Sharma, said, "Train services between Guwahati and New Jalpaiguri and Guwahati to Dibrugarh, Silchar, Murkongselek and Agartala (Tripura) were normal. However, the situation is being closely monitored and passengers are being intimated through SMS about cancellation of trains. Booking counters have been kept open at Katihar, New Jalpaiguri and Guwahati stations to facilitate easy refund to passengers."

Train services between Assam and the rest of the country snapped yesterday after tracks near Dalkhola station in Bengal's North Dinajpur district and between Barsoi and Sudhani stations in Bihar's Katihar district went under water on Saturday night.

Two IAF helicopters were pressed into service this morning for aerial survey in Morigaon and Dhubri, the two worst-affected districts.

"The Brahmaputra, which crossed its danger level on Saturday, swelled further today and inundated Dhubri town and its neighbouring areas. The Gadadhar, the Sankosh and the Tipaki receded today, which helped restore communication on National Highway 31. This helped us to transport relief materials which will be airdropped tomorrow in some inaccessible areas," Dhubri district disaster management officer Moferjal Sarkar said.

Altogether 7.48 lakh people have been hit by floods in Dhubri district, the highest among the 22 affected districts. At least 84 people have died in floods that hit Assam last month and affected more than 25 lakh people.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today called chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal again and took stock of the flood situation, which has been described the worst since 1998. Modi assured Sonowal all possible assistance from the Centre. Sonowal also talked to Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, requesting him to assist people from Assam stranded at Kishanganj station following cancellation of trains.

"The riverbeds have risen over the years due to siltation and this has reduced the rivers' water-retention capacity. This is one of the reasons of severe floods in the past several years. We are taking up a project to dredge the Brahmaputra as one of the flood mitigation measures," Sonowal said after conducting an aerial survey of flood-affected areas in central Assam.

Officials said 480 National Disaster Response Force personnel have been deployed at 16 locations and 266 State Disaster Response Force personnel in 30 areas. They have rescued 5,895 people and 87 animals so far.