Dhemaji remains the most affected district in the state, followed by Tinsukia, Majuli and Dibrugarh. (File)
Guwahati:
As of Friday, floodwaters entered 16 districts of Assam, affecting more than 2.53 lakh people, while the death toll from the flood rose to 16 after the death of another person, indicated officials.
Dhemaji remains the most affected district in the state, followed by Tinsukia, Majuli and Dibrugarh.
The flood killed one person in Dibrugarh district, according to the daily flood bulletin of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).
The Brahmaputra river and its tributaries flow above the danger level in several places and have flooded the districts of Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Udalguri, Darranf, Baksa, Nalbari, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Nagaon, Golaghat, Jorhat, Majuli, Sivasagar , Dibinskarh, officials said.
District authorities have set up 142 relief camps and distribution centers in six districts, where more than 18,000 people have taken refuge, ASDMA said.
A report by Morigaon indicates that 80% of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary area has been flooded, forcing wild animals, including one-horned Indian rhinos, to move to the neighboring highlands.
The sanctuary has more than 100 rhinos, 1,500 wild buffaloes and thousands of pigs.
According to his forest ranger, the floodwaters entered the sanctuary on Thursday and the situation is “alarming”.
The flood also invaded nearly 12,000 hectares of farmland with standing crops, according to the report.
The Brahmaputra flows over the danger mark at Neamatighat in the district of Jorhat, the city of Dhubri and Tezpur in the district of Sonitpur, the bulletin said.
Roads and infrastructure were damaged in several places, he added.
