GUWAHATI, Sept 23 – Two more districts have been affected by the current wave of floods raising the number of flood-hit districts to 16 and that of the flood-hit revenue circles to 55.

Seven persons have died and several others affected as Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and the acute encephalitis like diseases have taken a serious turn in Darrang district.

Guwahati: Forest officials in most rhino habitats in Assam have been working through the night to save wildlife severely affected after flood waters submerged vast areas of sanctuaries.

The flood season is crucial for the animals in protected areas as poachers take advantage of the situation to hunt, particularly the one-horned rhino for its high value in various Southeast Asian markets.

Over 2.44 lakh people have been affected by floods in 14 districts across Assam in the past few days, with the authorities shifting over 32,000 people to relief camps, official sources said here on

Guwahati: More than 10,000 people have been affected in the first wave of flood in Assam with almost all major rivers, including the Brahmaputra, maintaining a rising trend as the monsoon hit the state as well as adjoining areas.

The first wave of flood had so far affected the five districts of North Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Darrang, Sonitpur and Hailakandi. Over 7,000 population had been affected in North Lakhimpur district, while 1500 families had been affected in Dhemaji district.

Folic acid debacle

SIVASAGAR: The Sivasagar district unit of All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) today staged a three-hour protest at Doul Mukh Charali in Sivasagar against ‘folic acid poisoning’, in which several hundred girls in Sonitpur and Darrang districts fell ill after consuming the folic acid tablets distributed free in schools under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scheme.

Who will now be held responsible? Whose negligence is all this? And will the guilty face the music?

At least 350 girls in Tezpur and 45 in Mangaldoi fell ill after they were given folic acid tablets under a National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scheme in Sonitpur and Darrang district on Wednesday. The Mangaldoi DC has ordered a magistrate-level inquiry into the incident. Condemning the incident, the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) has demanded of the State government to find out the manufacturers of the tablets and punish them.

GUWAHATI: The people of Rajbari, Tamulbari, Tintukra, Rail Gate, Bonda, Birkuchi and Sankar Gaon villages under Kamrup (Metro) have been suffering from the non-availability of pure drinking water.

NEW DELHI, May 7 – UNICEF has reported arsenic contamination in ground water in 18 districts of Assam and fluoride contamination in five districts.

GUWAHATI: Assam has reason to cheer. A census of one-horned rhinos at the renowned Kaziranga National Park (KNP) recorded an increase of 242 animals over a three-year period. This was disclosed by State Forest and Environment Minister Rockybul Hussain today.

The last census in 2009 recorded 2,048 rhinos in KNP, of which eight were translocated to Manas National Park. The two-day-long census, which ended on Sunday evening, recorded the presence of 2,290 one-horned rhinos in the Park.

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