GUWAHATI: The flood situation in Assam remained grim on Friday as three deaths were reported and nearly 15 lakh people in 25 districts of the state still affected by the deluge which also inundated more than half of the Kaziranga National Park.According to a report by Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), three persons have been killed in various flood-related incidents in Dhemaji, Dhubri and Nagaon districts.With this, the total number of people who lost their lives in flood-related incidents this year has gone up to 52, including eight in Guwahati.ASDMA said at present more than 14.97 lakh people have been affected by the flood in various districts, including Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Darrang, Nalbari, Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Chirang, Kokrajhar, Dhubri, South Salmara, Goalpara, Morigaon and Nagaon.Till Thursday, 17.43 lakh people were affected in the latest wave of flood in the state.At the Kaziranga National Park, 62 per cent of the area is under water, leaving some animals dead and some moving to nearby highlands.Some animals were killed by speeding vehicles on the National Highway 37, which passes through the Park.ASDMA said 2,240 villages were under water at present and more than 79,000 hectares of crop areas inundated.The worst affected was South Salmara, where over 3.07 lakh people have been affected by the deluge, followed by Morigaon with more than 2.23 lakh people being affected.In Guwahati also, water logging incidents have been reported, ASDMA said.Authorities are running 363 relief camps and distribution centres in 19 districts, where 25,269 people have taken shelter.The government has distributed 2,903.25 quintal of rice, 596.92 quintal of pulses, 366.25 quintal of salt and 472.52 litre of mustard oil among the flood victims since yesterday, ASDMA said.Across the state, 14,18,043 animals and poultry have been affected by the flood.Many roads, embankments and bridges have been damaged by floods in many districts, including Goalpara, South Salmara, Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur, Sivasagar, Majuli, Barpeta, Golaghat , Jorhat, Nagaon, Kokrajhar and Udalguri.Brahmaputra river water was flowing above the danger mark at five places — Guwahati, Nimatighat in Jorhat, Tezpur in Sonitpur, Goalpara and Dhubri towns.Other rivers like Desang Naglamuragat in Sivasagar, Dhansiri at Numaligarh in Golaghat and Kushiyara in Karimganj town were flowing above the danger marks.Railway minister Suresh Prabhu on Friday asked senior rail officials to work in close coordination with state governments of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to ensure smooth relief and rescue operations.Prabhu convened a special meeting of Railway Board officials to take stock of the flood situation.He also asked the officials to ensure that drinking water supply, food grains, medicines and healthcare facilities movement for northeast is given priority and ensure their smooth transportation by the railways.He directed the officials to extend possible assistance in repairing roads so that smooth connectivity be provided for rescue and relief.Rail services are fully operational in the states and have not been affected by the floods, said a senior railway ministry official.

Source: Times of India July 14, 2017 17:40 UTC