GUWAHATI: Six more people died in the first bout of the flood in Assam, taking the death toll to 17. The latest deaths occurred in southern Assam's Barak Valley. Official sources said four people died in Karimganj district while two others lost their lives in Cachar district.
An estimated 5.64 lakh people are affected in 727 villages and localities of five districts such as Nagaon, Hojai, Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi. According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority, 3,890 hectares of cropland was also affected by the deluge.
The authorities set up 457 relief camps in four districts where 1,57,524 people were taking shelter. The National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force were engaged in evacuating the marooned. They evacuated 9,250 people in the past 24 hours.
The Hailakandi district administration ordered suspension of classes and examinations at all educational institutes until further orders. Official sources said the order was issued as most schools and colleges besides roads remained submerged in different parts.
The flood has affected 235 of the 331 villages in the district. Uncertainty over NRC draft publication - The flood has cast a shadow on the publication of the second and final draft of National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state. It is being updated under the direct monitoring of the Supreme Court.
The final draft is due for publication by June 30 next. "We are keeping a close watch on the situation. The NRC updation work was going on in full swing and suddenly, there is this flood. It is a heavy loss. I am not very optimistic about meeting the deadline," NRC state coordinator Prateek Hajela told The New Indian Express. He said 99 per cent of the work, pertaining to verification of documents of applicants, had been completed.
"The mop up and computerised data entry work is going on. There is a small number of people who have not been able to come with documents for verification before NRC authorities due to the flood. But for us, each and every person is important. We have to verify everybody before publishing the final draft," he added. The first draft, published on December 31 last year, covered 1.9 crore of the 3.29 crore applicants.