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Regular-article-logo Tuesday, 23 April 2024

From jail barracks to relief camp

409 prisoners from the district jail have been shifted after floodwaters submerged the jail barracks

Mukesh Kumar Singh Dhubri Published 16.07.19, 06:55 PM
The flooded ASTC bus terminus in Dhubri

The flooded ASTC bus terminus in Dhubri (Mukesh Kr Singh)

The district administration here has shifted 409 prisoners from the district jail on Monday night after floodwaters submerged the jail barracks.

All the prisoners have been moved to the Dhubri Girls College building near the jail. The shifting exercise was carried out under high-security cover by central paramilitary forces and completed in three hours.

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The shifted inmates included 400 men and nine women.

The exercise started at 11pm on Monday and was completed around 2am.

Dhubri district magistrate Ananta Lal Gyani monitored the entire process of shifting while Dhubri additional superintendent of police Nirupam Hazarika, deputy superintendent of police (HQ) Trinayan Bhuyan and superintendent of jail and other officials assisted him. “We shifted total 409 inmates to Dhubri Girls College building using boats as the floodwaters entered the jail barracks and the water level is still rising,” a police officer said.

The road connectivity to Dhubri town remains cut off from Guwahati for the second day because of flooding and the rising water level of the Brahamputra and its tributaries in the district.

At least two persons have lost their lives in flood-related accidents. Floodwaters have also submerged several hectares of cropland.

“We have set up a number of flood relief camps in susceptible areas and these camps are co-ordinating with the district administration to provide relief to the inmates who have taken shelter there,” Gyani said. The power supply in the town has been disconnected since Monday.

The deluge has affected nearly one lakh people in over 560 revenue villages of two central Assam districts, Nagaon and Morigaon.

The Nagaon administration has clamped Section 144 CrPC banning Koliabor villagers from moving along the 900m newly erected Hatimura dyke.

Morigaon deputy commissioner Rituraj Bora said after the damage of a locally erected dyke in Tengaguri area all possible measures are being taken to ensure safety of the people living in the riverbank areas.

In Mangaldoi town, State Disaster Response Force boats were pressed into service in the Milanpur area to rescue and evacuate flood-affected people. The town was flooded after the Nonoi river embankment breached in Sipajhar revenue circle near Khandazan on Tuesday morning. Over 100 villages have been inundated in Darrang district.

Affected people have alleged scarcity of drinking water and relief materials.

Additional reporting by our correspondents in Nagaon and Mangaladoi

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