Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Saturday assured the flood-hit people of Assam and Meghalaya all the help required from the Central Government even as he assured that a unit of the National Disaster Rescue Force would be raised in the region, which witness disasters in the form of floods and landslides regularly.
The Union Minister made the assurances after visiting the flood-hit areas of Assam and Meghalaya on Friday and Saturday and said the Centre had taken up the matter seriously.
“Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh would visit the State on October 1 to assess the devastations caused by the wave of floods in Assam and Meghalaya in the past one week,” he said, while adding that there would be no dearth of efforts from the Central Government to help the State Governments in tacking the current disasters.
The Union Minister on Saturday made an aerial survey of Goalpara, Dhubri and Kamrup districts in lower Assam and North Garo Hills and South Garo Hills districts of Meghalaya.
While a total of 37 people have been killed in Assam due to the current wave of floods particularly in four districts-Goalpara, Dhubri, Kamrup (Metro) and Kamrup (Rural) districts, over 40 people were killed in Meghalaya so far where floods have affected the hilly Garo Hills region of Meghalaya.
“We already have a battalion of the NDRF in Guwahati. Now we have decided to set up another battalion of the force in northeast. However, the location where the battalion will be set up is yet to be finalised,” he said.
“I cannot make an announcement today as the Prime Minister is out of the country. However, I am assuring that the Centre will definitely make an announcement for tiding over the post-flood situation after the return of the Prime Minister from US visit,” Rijiju said.