Flood situation in Tripura worsens, death toll rises to 10, over 34,000 people in camps

Agartala: The flood situation in Tripura further worsened on Wednesday with the death toll rising to 10 and over 34,100 people taking shelter in 331 relief camps in all the eight districts, officials said, adding that incessant heavy rains since Monday have created havoc in the state.

Chief Minister Manik Saha, who has sought deployment of additional National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel, talked with Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the phone and apprised him about the prevailing flood situation in the state.

"The Home Minister assured me of all possible support during this crisis. I am grateful to him for providing all possible support to us at this hour," Saha said in a post on X.

Disaster Management Department officials said that at least nine people, including three members of a family, were killed and two persons were injured in separate incidents of landslides and drowning following incessant rains in Tripura during the past 48 hours.

According to the officials, the 10 deaths, including a 12-year-old girl, were reported from South Tripura, Gomati, and Khowai districts.

An official said that three members of a family, including a woman and a child, died at Debipur in South Tripura district when their house collapsed due to a massive landslide late on Monday night. Villagers recovered the three bodies on Tuesday morning. The deceased were identified as Trisankar Chakma, 50, his wife Rajini Chakma, 41, and their daughter Mita Chakma, 12.

The official said that over 34,100 people belonging to over 6,620 families had so far taken shelter in 331 camps in eight districts while over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees uprooted.

Water Resource Department officials said that most of the prominent rivers in Tripura are either flowing above critical or danger levels while the state’s main river Gomati has crossed the 'extreme danger level' in many places of Gomati and Sepahijala districts, as rainfall has continued.

A large number of human habitations, urban and rural areas and many important highways have been inundated due to the floods while crops and other important assets were damaged in huge areas in all eight districts.

Chief Minister Saha, before going to his office in the civil Secretariat, had to come out from his private residence on a boat of the Disaster Management Authority.

Due to the heavy rain and floods, the government had ordered the closure of schools on Wednesday and Thursday.

The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled 10 local trains in Tripura. An NFR spokesman said that due to heavy rains railway tracks were damaged in Gomati district, forcing the railway authority to cancel these trains.

A defence spokesman said that following the requisition from state administrations, four columns of Assam Rifles were deployed in different districts and they are working in close coordination with civil administration to rescue civilians stranded due to floods.

First aid and essential items have been distributed by the Assam Rifles to hundreds of stranded people and those in relief camps.

An India Meteorological Department (IMD) statement said that heavy to very heavy rainfall is very likely to continue over Tripura for the next five days.

“The low-pressure area over north Bangladesh and neighbourhood persisted over the same region on Wednesday. The associated cyclonic circulation extends up to 9.6 km above mean sea level. It is likely to move nearly westwards across West Bengal during the next 48 hours,” the statement said.

The IMD recorded 145 mm rainfall till 5.30 p.m. on Wednesday and 182 mm rainfall between 8.30 a.m. on Tuesday to 8.30 a.m. on Wednesday.