Daijiworld Media Network – Guwahati

Guwahati, Jul 23: The death toll in this year's floods in Assam has risen to 41, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday warning that the number could increase further as an estimated 70 to 80 people remain missing.

The floods, triggered by upstream cloudbursts and exceptionally heavy rainfall, have affected more than nine lakh people across over 1,800 villages in 25 districts, causing widespread devastation and displacing thousands.

Speaking to reporters after visiting a relief camp at Komarbondha in Golaghat district, Sarma described the flood situation as "quite serious".

"So far, 41 people have died, but according to our assessment, there are still 70 to 80 people missing. I estimate that the casualty figure will rise further," he said.

The Chief Minister attributed the disaster primarily to a cloudburst in neighbouring Nagaland, which sent massive volumes of water downstream into Assam.

"This entire situation arose because of a cloudburst in Nagaland. Water from the upstream floods severely affected four districts of Assam," he said.

Sarma said Union Home Minister Amit Shah had spoken to him earlier in the day and assured the Centre's full support for relief and rehabilitation efforts.

According to the Chief Minister, Shah informed him that an inter-ministerial central team comprising officials from various ministries would visit Assam within the next one or two days to assess the damage and determine the assistance required from the Centre.

In a post on X, Sarma said the central team would evaluate the extent of the destruction and help determine financial assistance for rebuilding livelihoods.

Expressing gratitude to the Union Home Minister, Sarma said both the Centre and the state government would work together to support the affected people during the crisis.

Describing the destruction as being on an "unimaginable scale", the Chief Minister said thousands of livestock had been washed away and flood-hit residents were grappling with submerged farmlands, damaged homes and the loss of important personal documents.

"The people are in a difficult situation, and the government will try to help them in every possible way," he said.

Sarma said the floods were caused by cloudbursts in upstream areas, particularly in Nagaland, along with exceptionally heavy rainfall in Assam, where precipitation in some places was recorded at 436 per cent above normal.

He noted that several villages inundated during the current floods had not experienced such severe flooding in recent history.

The state government, with support from the Indian Air Force, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and district administrations, has launched extensive rescue and relief operations.

Authorities are carrying out round-the-clock rescue missions by air and boat, while 148 relief camps have been established across the state, sheltering nearly 30,000 displaced people.

Sarma said rescue teams were delivering food, drinking water and essential supplies to affected families, adding that more than 3 lakh kilograms of rice and other relief materials had already been distributed in the worst-affected districts, with additional supplies being dispatched.