A series of landslips due to heavy rainfall killed at least 20 people and injured a dozen in southern Assam’s Barak Valley early on Tuesday.
Officials said seven people each were killed in Cachar and Hailakandi districts while six died in Karimganj district. These three districts comprise the valley surrounded by hills.
“We have admitted 12 people to local hospitals. Most of the victims were asleep when the tragedy struck,” said a rescue official in Cachar district where the incident happened at Joypur.
A middle-aged man, his three sons and three daughters were killed in the Joypur area while his wife and a fourth son escaped with injuries.
Landslips occurred at two places at Kaliganj in Karimganj district. A 14-year-old girl was killed in one incident and all five members of a family lost their lives in the other.
Hailakandi’s case was similar. A man was killed in one incident at Mohanpur. In the other incident at Bhattor Bazar, all six members of a family were killed.
₹4 lakh ex-gratia
Assam Environment Minister Parimal Suklabaidya, who hails from Barak Valley, announced an ex-gratia of ₹4 lakh for the kin of each of the deceased.
“This is a sad day for us. We have asked the district authorities to leave no stone unturned to provide relief for the survivors and others who have been affected,” Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said.
Floods due to heavy rainfall have so far killed nine persons in Assam and two in Meghalaya. A landslip killed three people — a woman and her two children — in Arunachal Pradesh in May.
