Mitigating A Natural Disaster Like the Perennial Flood in Assam Need Proper Policies
By Nava Thakuria, New
Age Islam
15 July
2024
Over 1,300 Villages
Under Cachar, Dhubri, Nagaon, Dhemaji, Golaghat, Tamulpur, Chirang, Darrang,
Goalpara, Karimganj, Etc Districts Were Under Flood Water That Damaged More
Than 25,000 Hectares Of Crop Area. The Annual Flood Embracing The Incessant
Rainfalls Devastated 10,50,000 Domestic Animals & Poultry In Assam
-------
Flood
in Assam/Photo: The Times of India
-----
As the
flood situation in Assam has improved, let us think about its mitigation and if
not let’s discuss its adaptation strategies. The second wave of flood snatched
away the lives of 109 people and till Momay over 55,000 people remain in relief
camps. Over 1,300 villages under Cachar, Dhubri, Nagaon, Dhemaji, Golaghat,
Tamulpur, Chirang, Darrang, Goalpara, Karimganj, etc districts were under flood
water that damaged more than 25,000 hectares of crop area. The annual flood
embracing the incessant rainfalls devastated 10,50,000 domestic animals &
poultry in Assam and it damaged a number of embankments, roads & bridges,
buildings and other infrastructures.
Kaziranga
National Park and Tiger Reserve in central Assam also went under flood water
from the swollen Brahmaputra river and no less than 174 wild animals including
10 rhinos and 144 deers died due to drowning and other causes. The park
authority also successfully rescued 133 animals including two rhino calves
during the flood time and 116 animals were already released after necessary
treatments. The field director Sonali Ghosh informed media persons that most of
the forest camps (out of 233) inside the park went under flood water for many
days.
The safe
habitat for the largest population of single horn rhinoceros in the world
eventually experiences flooding every year and as the core 430 square kilometer
area goes under the water the animals take refuge in the highlands erected
inside it. Many animals also cross the National Highway-715 on its southern
border to climb the hilly areas of Karbi Anglong. While crossing the highway,
some precious animals are killed by the speeding vehicles and hence the
authorities instruct the drivers to maintain the safe speed limit to avoid any
unwanted incidents. Often the vehicles are escorted by the forest officials
while crossing the park to prevent accidents with the fleeing animals. The
UNESCO world heritage site, which gives shelter to more than 2600 one-horned
rhinos along with Asiatic elephants, water buffalo, tigers, etc faced a major
flood in 2017, when over 350 animals died due to drowning and colliding with
moving vehicles on the highway.
Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, who has recently won a consecutive third term in New
Delhi, assured full cooperation to the State government to deal with the
deluge. Union home minister Amit Shah also called Assam chief minister Himanta
Biswa Sarma to reassure all possible support from the Centre. Union ministers
Sarbananda Sonowal and Pabitra Margherita, both hail from Assam, assessed the
flood situation in various parts and assured the people that the governments in
New Delhi and Dispur will look for a permanent solution to the recurring flood
problem. Assam Governor Gulab Chand Kataria also visited some flood-ridden
areas and took stock of the situation.
CM Sarma
personally visited a number of flood devastated areas to review the ground
situation and interacted with the displaced families. He also directed the
State ministers, legislators and concerned officials to monitor the situation
closely and take necessary actions as and when needed. State ministers Pijush
Hazarika, Bimal Bora, Ranoj Pegu, Jayanta Mallaburuah, Jogen Mahan, Atul Bora,
Keshav Mahanta, Ranjeet Kumar Dass, etc visited the affected villages and
reviewed the rescue & relief operations. Various social organisations like
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh extended support to the flood affected residents
and provided phenyl, bleaching powder, livestock feed, etc. to address the
post-flood diseases.
Assam’s
neighbouring States namely Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya,
Tripura and Mizoram also experienced relentless rains and subsequent floods.
Heavy rains inflated the rivers of Manipur like Imphal, Thoubal, Nambul, Iril,
etc and submerged a large area of arable land and residential localities. The
overpowered Brahmaputra and other rivers inundated a large area of neighbouring
Bangladesh, where 40,000 people were forced to take shelter in government run
relief camps. The recent wave of flood in Bangladesh affected 17 districts (out
of 64 units). By now two million people are facing the flood furies, where ten
individuals lost their lives due to the disaster.
Mitigating
a natural disaster like the perennial flood in Assam may emerge as a
challenging task but we must not lose hopes. The government schemes (mostly
embankment-centric) are announced regularly and implemented accordingly but it
hardly works fully. Once we talked about controlling the flood (so the flood
control department existed) and now admit we have to adopt the ways to live
with the flood. Even if we cannot
mitigate the flood menace, it’s devastating impact can be minimised with proper
policies. Moreover, New Delhi must discuss with upper riparian countries like
Bhutan and Tibet (now under China) for receiving timely alerts about unusual
high rainfalls and hydropower activities (including damning water resources) in
their places. It’s time for the government to redefine the flood adaptation
measures keeping an eye on some positive outcomes for the common people.
-----
Nava Thakuria is a northeast India-based professional journalist who is
an engineering graduate.
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/current-affairs/natural-disaster-flood-assam-policies/d/132703
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic
Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism