Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and sought his intervention to declare the floods in the state a national problem. He apprised the prime minister of the havoc wreaked by the disaster and gave him details of the number of casualties, according to The Times of India.
Home Affairs Minister Rajnath Singh had declared the flood situation in Assam a national problem after conducting an aerial survey on July 30 to take stock of the damage. Sonowal, however, said it was not enough.
On Friday, Assam State Disaster Management Authority said 1.26 lakh people were still affected across 10 districts, and as many as 14,000 people were in relief camps. Hundreds of animals also drowned as Kaziranga National Park went under water.
The chief minister also elaborated on how deluge changes the state's demography and costs the exchequer. He said dykes and embankments needed urgent repair work. Assam has 1,250 river embankments that were built at least 30 to 50 years ago as a flood protection measure.
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