Flood situation in India's Assam turns grim as death toll reaches 35

NEW DELHI, July 2 (Xinhua) -- The flood situation in India's northeastern state of Assam turned grim on Tuesday as more than half a million people were rendered homeless after flood water entered their homes, said a state government official.

Major rivers in the state were said to be flowing much above their normal levels. According to media reports, as many as 35 people had died this year alone in the state so far in flood-related incidents. Nearly 19 out of the total 35 districts in the state have been affected by the floods.

Indian Air Force (IAF) choppers were pressed into service to rescue people stuck in the flood-affected areas. In one such rescue operation on Tuesday, a Mi-17 IV helicopter of the IAF rescued 13 marooned survivors from a small island in the flooded river Brahmaputra, north of Dibrugarh in Assam, said the state's Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in a post on X (Twitter).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the Assam chief minister on Monday and enquired about the flood situation. "He assured me of full cooperation from the Government of India in this hour of crisis," said Sarma.

A report by The Indian Express newspaper said the floods affected 640,000 people from 1,275 villages across 19 districts in the state as of Monday evening.

"The displacement brought about by the floods has resulted in 8,142 people taking shelter in 72 relief camps across 11 districts," the report said, adding "As many as 35 people have lost their lives to flood-related incidents so far this year."

According to the report, different rivers running through Assam such as Brahmaputra, Desang, Subansiri, Dikhow, Buridehing, Beki and Barak were flowing above normal levels.

Meanwhile, several areas in the country's western state of Gujarat also faced a flood-like situation after receiving heavy rains over the past 24 hours. A couple of major roads were shut for traffic due to severe waterlogging.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for some districts in Gujarat, predicting extremely heavy rains over the next two days.

A similar forecast was made about heavy rains in Delhi and surrounding areas and the northern state of Uttarakhand on Tuesday.