Heavy rains in Tripura: One dead, nearly 6,000 homeless sheltered in 48 relief camps

Mangalore Today News Network

Tripura, Apr 05, 2019 : A woman has died and nearly 6,000  people have been displaced from their homes due to heavy rains and hailstorm in different parts of Tripura in the last three days, officials said, Indian Express reported.

 

Speaking to indianexpress.com, an official on duty at the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) informed that 5,894 persons from different parts of West Tripura and Khowai districts were displaced from their homes due to heavy rainfall and were sheltered in 48 relief camps.

“Among eight districts of the state, West Tripura suffered the maximum damage during rainfall and thunderstorms. Relief camps were set up in Khowai and West Tripura district. 1,425 people rendered homeless in Khowai district were sheltered in 16 relief camps and 4,469 people were sheltered in 32 relief camps in West Tripura”, the official said.

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), state police and other agencies are on the standby for any major natural calamity.
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An SEOC report said this morning that Dhalai district, Khowai, Unakoti and South Tripura districts sustained damages as well. One Jamuna Debbarma, 37, from Katira Ranibari village in Jirania sub-division in West Tripura died during the thunderstorm on April 1. A full report of the damage and emergency assistance is still being compiled.

Meanwhile, Scientist Ranjan Phukan from Meteorological Centre, Agartala, informed that heavy rainfall, thunderstorm and hailstorm occurred in some parts of Tripura in last 72 hours. He said Tripura along with few other states of NE India is likely to witness rainfall with thunderstorm in the next few weeks due to northwesterlies and moisture from the Bay of Bengal.

“Northeast India is prone to thunderstorm due to Kalboishakhi or northwesters from March every year. It is expected to continue till May. But for the last three days, rainfall and thunderstorm were expected since the region is getting moisture from the Bay of Bengal. The weather is likely to remain unchanged in the coming days”, the scientist said. He added that thunderstorms and gusts of winds are likely on 6th and 7th of the month.

Tripura sustained massive damage last year due to heavy downpour and thunderstorm as over 40,000 people were forced to take shelter in relief camps due to flood conditions, especially in Gomati, Khowai, Sepahijala and West Tripura districts.

The flood conditions were triggered since water level in River Howrah, Khowai, Gomati and Katakhal canal exceeded safety limits. The state government announced to construct a series of small dams on Baramura Range to control unchecked rainwater flow into rivers in the plains, which, in turn, inundated large tracts of land in 2018.