Assam Congress demands flood crisis be declared a national problem

A delegation from the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), led by Relief & Rehabilitation Department Chairman Pranjit Das, has formally requested that the Indian central government declare the state’s recurring flood and river erosion crisis a ‘national problem’. The delegation met with Governor Lakshman Acharya to submit a memorandum addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other union ministers.

According to the memorandum, approximately 40% of Assam’s land area—roughly 31.05 lakh hectares—is flood-prone, a figure significantly higher than the national average of 10.2%. The crisis is attributed to heavy siltation in the Brahmaputra and Barak river basins, torrential monsoon rains, shallow riverbeds, embankment breaches, and climate change. These factors have caused massive displacement and destroyed the livelihoods of farmers, laborers, and tea garden workers.

The APCC is calling for the formation of a high-level Task Force consisting of government officials, scientists, and technical experts. They are also demanding central funding for a comprehensive Master Plan that includes river course regulation, scientific dredging, embankment strengthening, and improved real-time flood forecasting and early warning systems.