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Over 500 families in Assam live on railway tracks as flood swamps villages

Other News Materials 21 May 2022 21:59 (UTC +04:00)
Over 500 families in Assam live on railway tracks as flood swamps villages

Over 500 families from two villages of Assam’s flood-hit Jamunamukh district had to resort to living on railway tracks. They had to do this as the railway tracks were the only high ground that had not submerged in flood waters, Trend reports citing India Today.

Residents of Changjurai and Patia Pathar village are still reeling from the fact that they lost almost everything in the Assam floods. They have refuge under temporary sheds constructed from tarpaulin sheets, reported NDTV.

The villagers claim that they have not received much help from the state government and district administration in the last five days.

The situation in Assam remains concerning. Over 8 lakh people in 2,585 villages of 29 districts have been hit by the unrelenting downpour. 14 people have died until now due to the landslides triggered by the rains.

Monwara Begum (43), from Paitha Pathar village, is currently living in a temporary shed. Four other families have joined her to survive the flood and all of them are living in inhumane conditions, with almost no food, under the same roof.

Monwara Begum said, “For three days we were under the open sky, we then took some money on credit and bought this tarpaulin sheet. We are five families living under the same sheet. There is no privacy.”

Another victim of the floods, Beauty Bordoloi, is also living with her family under a tarpaulin sheet. Her home in Changjurai village was lost in the floods. “Our harvest-ready crop was destroyed,” she says, adding, “The situation is uncertain and challenging. It is very difficult to live like this.”

Bordoloi's family member, Sunanda Doloi, said, “There is no source of safe drinking water. We eat one meal a day, and that too, only some flattened rice over the last four days.”

Another victim of the flood, Nasibur Rehman, said, “After 4 days, we got help from the government yesterday. That, too, is not for everyone. They gave us a little rice, dal and oil. But some have not even received that.”

The Army, paramilitary forces, and national and state disaster relief forces have reportedly evacuated 21,884 people from various flood-hit areas using boats and helicopters.

NDTV reported that 86,772 people have taken shelter in 343 relief camps, while another 411 relief distribution centres are also operational.

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