After COVID-19 lockdown, now flood hits Assam farmers, others to live on roads
Guwahati: 56-year-old Idris Ali and his family are now being forced to live on roads after the flood waters entered their home.
Idris Ali – a farmer of Kuchiani village under Mayong revenue circle area in Assam’s Morigaon district and his family have already spent six nights on road under a makeshift tent.
Idris’s family was forced to move to Guwahati-Morigaon connecting road with some foods and household goods after the second wave of flood waters entered their home.
His family was hit by flood for the second time within a month.
The first flood in May last had completely submerged their paddy fields.
Idris Ali said that his family is now facing a food crisis.
“We are facing a lot of problems due to floods. We had lost something in an earlier flood, but this flood hit us more. The people are now facing a food crisis. Many people are now becoming homeless after flood waters washed away their homes. We are now living on roads. Where will we go? We have no option,” Idris Ali said.
He further said that he had faced a loss of around Rs 80,000 during COVID-19 lockdown period after not being able to find a market to sell his agricultural products.
“After lockdown, the flood hit us severely. Who will realize our present conditions? What will we do? We will die,” Idris Ali said.
The current wave of flood has affected nearly 99,000 people in Morigaon district.
A total of 209 villages in Maorigaon district including 119 villages under Mayong revenue circle area are affected in the flood and the flood waters submerged 10,771 hectares in the central Assam district.
Md Anarul Hussain – a farmer of West Mayong area said that the flood waters washed away his hard work after his 5 acre paddy field was completely submerged by flood waters.
“We have no other option. We have no food, entire paddy crops are now under water,” Md Anarul Islam said.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), more than 85,000 people have been affected in the areas under Mayong revenue circle and most of the people are farmers and living Below Poverty Line (BPL).
Many flood affected people in the district are now living on roads without a future.
A local resident of Mayong area Sibananda Nath said that more than 100 villages in Mayong area are badly affected in the flood.
“The people have been affected a second time by floods within a month. Thousands of acres of agricultural lands, paddy fields are now under water. People are facing many problems,” Sibananda Nath said.
According to the ASDMA reports, over 75,700 hectares of crop lands have been affected by the second wave of flood across the state.
On the other hand, one person on Wednesday drowned in flood waters in Dhubri district.
28 people died due to floods in the state this year so far.
(By Hemanta Kumar Nath, Guwahati)
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