By Shivam Kumar Mishra
Image Source: Business Standard
North-East India’s Assam has always been prone to floods. Almost every year there is a devastating impact of floods on the state, resulting in the loss of humans and animals, damage to crops and widespread dislocation, diseases and hunger. 2022 has not been any different, the pre-monsoon showers have wreaked havoc in the state, so far claiming 24 lives and affecting 7.19 lakh people.
Last year approximately 6.50 lac people were affected by the floods, seven humans and twenty-four endangered animals lost their lives. 2020 was more devastating, over 57.7 lakh people were affected and 119 lives were lost in 30 districts of Assam as per the data of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA). The visuals from the flood-affected areas are horrifying and it makes one wonder why is the state facing the wrath of the floods every year.
Assam has forever been inclined to floods, however, the Great Earthquake of 1950, prompted gigantic changes in the geography and the Brahmaputra valley from that point has seen more deadly floods. As per the experts, the quakes made the grand river more unstable and led to more frequent shifting of channels and erosion.
The meteorological factors and the topography of Assam do not help the state either. There has been a long history of carelessness and mismanagement by authorities in regards to the floods over the Brahmaputra, tracing back to the British rule in India and maybe much prior.
Assam was a cash crop state for the British and to safeguard the crops they started making embankments; even after 75 years of Independence, the policy to tackle floods has not changed much. The rising force of floods consistently tells a lot about the effectiveness of these embankments.
This has been a continuing trend for decades and no lesson has been learned so far. The lack of coordination in policymaking and disaster management between the center and state is a major hurdle; a similar lack of coordination can be seen between the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Assam Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA). It’s high time that the governments come up with a holistic plan to stop the unending loss of human lives and endangered animals.
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