Heavy rains have triggered devastating floods and landslides in Tripura, killing at least 23 people and displacing more than 65,000 residents, authorities reported yesterday.
Television footage captured scenes of army personnel navigating rescue boats through waterlogged streets, where cars and buses remained stuck. The flooding has forced nearly 1.7 million people to be affected and there are over 450 relief camps across the state, Hindustan Times reports.
Disaster Management Department officials reported that more than 1,055 houses were either fully or partially destroyed, and many crucial highways were blocked due to hundreds of uprooted trees.
Significant damage to infrastructure, crops, and livestock has been reported, worsening the distress of those affected. Most fatalities resulted from landslides, with some deaths caused by the collapse of mud walls and drowning.
The Indian Army has deployed over 80 personnel, who have rescued 334 people stranded by the rising floodwaters.
Agartala, the capital city, has been severely affected, with more than 80% of the area submerged, Times of India reports.
It has been difficult to cremate bodies in both urban and rural areas for the past three days. All the crematoriums, including those in Agartala, are located on riverbanks and have been submerged.
After the city received 233mm of rainfall on Wednesday, water could not be pumped out as the Haora River was overflowing. Agartala Mayor Dipak Majumder noted that water from both the Haora and Kathakhal rivers had flowed back into the city, breaching embankments.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the advance release of Rs40 crore to assist the state in its relief and rehabilitation efforts
“Given the flood situation in Tripura, the central govt, under the leadership of Modi Ji, has approved the release of ₹40 crore in advance, as the central share from SDRF, to provide relief to the affected people. The 11 NDRF teams, 3 columns of the Army, and 4 helicopters of the Air Force deployed by the Centre are already assisting the state govt in relief and rescue operations,” Amit Shah wrote on X.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected regions, including Udaipur, Amarpur, and Karbook in the Gomati district, yesterday.
He also visited several relief camps to assess the situation and announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs4 lakh to the families of the victims.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for Tripura, warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall continuing until today. Tripura is currently experiencing its worst floods since 1956, with the combination of heavy rains and reverse water flow creating havoc.
