Assam flood toll rises to 60

Houses of over 10 lakh people remained submerged and at least 22,000 people are still lodged in the 118 relief camps

Written by Samudra Gupta Kashyap
Guwahati | July 17, 2017 03:11 AM IST

1 min read

Representational Image/ PTI

The death toll in the Assam flood climbed to 60 on Sunday with the authorities reporting one death in Morigaon district. Though the water-level of the Brahmaputra and most of its tributaries receded considerably on Sunday, a fresh embankment breach in Morigaon district in central Assam caused extensive damage late Saturday night, inundating over a dozen villages in the Lahorighat sub-division.

Houses of over 10 lakh people remained submerged and at least 22,000 people are still lodged in the 118 relief camps. On Sunday, South Salmara, Dhubri and Morigaon remained the worst-affected districts.

The embankment that the Brahmaputra damaged at Kathoni village in Morigaon was constructed about three months ago. Over three lakh people have been affected in South Salmara, followed by 1.88 lakh in Dhubri and 1.60 lakh in Morigaon. The flood has caused extensive damage to agriculture, with the State Disaster Management Authority putting the total affected crop area at over two lakh hectares.