Assam floods: 'We are building temporary relief camps because people have no homes,' says Gorkha Development Council chief

As hundreds of families remain displaced after the devastating floods in Assam's Sivasagar district, the Gorkha Development Council (GDC) has begun setting up temporary relief camps and storage facilities for relief materials, saying many flood survivors no longer have homes to return to.
 

Prem Tamang, Chairman of the Gorkha Development Council (GDC), said the unprecedented flooding that struck the region on July 19 left entire villages buried under mud after floodwaters from neighbouring Nagaland carried massive amounts of silt and debris into Sivasagar.
 

"Floods are a seasonal phenomenon in Assam, but we have never witnessed anything like this. The floodwaters brought an enormous quantity of mud that buried entire villages, uprooted trees and bamboo, and even damaged large concrete buildings," Tamang said.
 

According to him, villages under the Greater Bihubor area, including Nepalikhuti and Hiloni, suffered extensive destruction.

"Out of nearly 283 houses in Nepalikhuti, only 15 to 20 houses are left standing. The rest have either collapsed or become uninhabitable. People have been displaced and are now staying in different places," he said.
 

Tamang said the council has been coordinating relief efforts after finding that many displaced families were unable to access aid because they were no longer living in their villages.
 

"Relief materials are arriving from different parts of Assam, but many affected families have moved elsewhere and the supplies are not reaching them. We are creating temporary storage spaces so that relief materials can be preserved and distributed efficiently," he said.

He added that the GDC had also started constructing temporary shelters for displaced residents.
 

"We are building temporary relief camps because people have no homes. Wherever possible, we have set up temporary shelters and will continue to do so until rehabilitation is completed," Tamang said.

The disaster has also devastated the local economy, with cattle rearing and dairy farming—primary sources of livelihood for many Gorkha families—suffering massive losses.
 

"Most villagers here depend on cows and the milk business. There is no place left to store cattle feed or relief supplies, so we are also building temporary storage facilities for fodder and other essential materials," he said.
 

Tamang estimated that around 1,000 cattle had died in the floods, dealing a severe blow to hundreds of farming families.

He said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, during his recent visit to Nepalikhuti, assured residents that a guard wall would be constructed along the Dikhow River to help protect the villages from future flooding.
 

"The government and various departments are doing their best, but rehabilitation will take time. Until permanent rehabilitation is completed, we will continue supporting displaced families through temporary relief camps and community-led relief efforts," Tamang said.
 

Eastern Assam witnessed one of its worst flood disasters in recent years after heavy rainfall and overflowing rivers inundated large parts of Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat and Golaghat districts.