Floods in North-East have affected lakhs

Guwahati (Assam) [India], July 20 (ANI): Floods across north east India have been left stranded and left homeless. More than 20 of Assam's 32 districts have been affected as incessant monsoon rains have forced the burgeoning Brahmaputra River and its tributaries to burst their banks. Over 2,000 villages in districts of Karimganj, Golaghat, Sonitpur and Lakhimpur have been submerged and over 40 people killed. India's Junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju undertook an aerial survey of the states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. He said, "The main problem is that you have to reach the place to understand the extent of damage done. We did an aerial survey and we saw that many of the portions of the highway have been damaged. The main issue is the highway water supply and the granaries and the paddy fields of the villagers which has been destroyed" More than three lakh people are stranded in Lakhimpur district alone. Meanwhile, 14 people were killed in a landslide in Laptap village of Papumpare district in Arunachal Pradesh. Rijiju was accompanied by the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, Pema Khandu, during an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas of Pasighat, Mebo, Dambuk, Mahadevpur and Diyun. She said, "It is a natural calamity and it is not in our hand. We cannot do anything about it but during rainfall to avoid such consequences, various awareness programmes are conducted by the disaster management department" The rescue operations are still underway by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams. (ANI)