Agartala, Aug 24 (IANS): The flood situation in Tripura, which was devastated by the monsoon deluge for the first time in over three decades, killing 26 people and damaging properties worth over Rs 5,000 crore, further improved on Saturday as most of the rivers in the state are flowing below the danger mark, officials said.
However, vast areas including croplands and human habitations in urban and rural areas are still inundated.
According to the Disaster Management officials, till Friday, at least 26 people, including women and children, had died and a few other people injured in landslides and drowning in flood water in six of the eight districts -- South Tripura, Gomati, West Tripura, Sepahijala, Unakoti and Khowai since Monday and two persons were reportedly missing.
Two Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawans Ashish Bose and Chiranjit were killed during rescue operations in South Tripura and West Tripura respectively.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Lok Sabha Member from Tripura West parliamentary seat and former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, state Congress President Asish Kumar Saha, Congress leader Sudip Roy Barman separately condoled the deaths on Saturday.
An official said that around 1.28 lakh people have taken shelter in 558 relief camps in all eight districts, while over 17 lakh people were affected in the entire state, which has witnessed unprecedented rain and devastating floods since Monday.
The Disaster Management officials said that most of the rivers in Tripura are flowing below the danger level except the state's main river, Gomati, which flows through Gomati and Sepahijala districts before entering Bangladesh. The river is still flowing above the danger level in the bordering Sonamura sub-division.
However, since Thursday afternoon, the rain in most places has either stopped or its intensity has reduced.
The Indian Air Force, which has deployed four helicopters, in a post on the X on Saturday said: "Mi-17 and ALH helicopters continue relentless efforts in Tripura flood relief operations, with NDRF personnel inducted into disaster-struck areas."
It said that operating from Agartala, the helicopters air-dropped over 4,000 food packets to stranded locals in many places of Gomati district and nearby areas.
A total of 28 tonnes of relief material has been airlifted till now for flood-affected Tripura, the IAF said.
CM Saha, who on Friday conducted an aerial survey of flood-affected areas of Udaipur, Amarpur and Karbook areas, and also visited many relief camps, on Saturday said that government officials and the IAF have been working tirelessly to deliver essential supplies to the flood-affected areas.
"Since Saturday morning, 3,000 packets have been dispatched and 5,000 more packets are ready for distribution.
Four IAF helicopters are aiding the efforts, ensuring critical support reaches those in need. Like Friday, we would ensure the delivery of packets. We're committed to supporting affected communities every step of the way. Also, we are exploring all possibilities to ensure the relief materials reach the affected areas,” the Chief Minister said in different social media posts.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday heavy to very heavy rainfall is very likely to occur at isolated places over Tripura for the next three days.
The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled several local trains in the state.
An NFR spokesperson said that due to heavy rain, railway tracks were damaged in Gomati and South Tripura districts, forcing the authorities to cancel these trains.
According to Disaster Management Department officials, over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees were uprooted, blocking many important highways.
Landslides occurred in 2,032 places across the state. The debris has been cleared.
As per preliminary estimates, around 5,000 hectares of vegetable farms and 1.20 lakh hectares of other croplands are still submerged.
"Preliminary reports suggest extensive damage to physical infrastructure including roads, bridges, electricity, buildings and houses. The actual figures would be known only after the field visit and assessments were completed.
According to preliminary estimates, properties valued at approximately Rs 5,000 crore have been damaged, though many areas are yet to be visited for preliminary assessments," a Revenue Department official told the media.