Raijor Dal MLA Akhil Gogoi has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare the recent floods in Sivasagar, Charaideo and Jorhat districts a “national disaster” and provide Rs 10 lakh each to affected families and business establishments.
In a letter to Modi, the Sivasagar MLA submitted a 22-point charter seeking immediate relief, rehabilitation and long-term reconstruction. He also demanded a CBI probe into the causes of the July 19 floods, including alleged illegal coal mining along the Assam-Nagaland border and sand and stone mining along the Dikhow riverbed.
Gogoi sought a Rs 1,000-crore special reconstruction package for Sivasagar and Nazira constituencies and urged the Centre to ensure that the Rs 15,000 one-time assistance announced by the Assam government reached every affected family.
For farmers, he sought irrigation support and quality seeds, while also demanding alternative land and pucca houses for families who lost their homes. He called for strengthening and raising embankments, installing modern sluice gates and undertaking comprehensive desiltation of the Dikhow, Darika, Janji, Mitong and Namdang rivers.
The MLA also sought funds to rebuild damaged schools, religious institutions and other infrastructure, besides compensation for losses suffered by fisheries, small tea growers, agarwood cultivators and rural enterprises.
Gogoi further demanded free books and uniforms for flood-affected students, waiver of admission fees from primary to degree level and regular mobile medical services in affected villages to prevent water-borne diseases.
The floods in Assam have so far claimed 104 lives, according to official figures.
