NALBARI, Aug 2 - The flood victims of Nalbari district have lauded Deputy Commissioner Bharat Bhusan Dev Choudhury for the timely help that saved their lives.
Paramananda Das, a resident of the worst- affected Ratanpur village in the district, said that it was due to the timely requisitioning of Army personnel by the Deputy Commissioner in the early morning of July 24, they could be safely evacuated to a relief camp located at Dhamdhama.
�Immediate action taken by the Deputy Commissioner saved our lives,� he said.
Floodwaters of the Pagladia river, flowing through the Chengnoi river, entered Ratanpur and Chataibari villages under Ghograpar revenue circle and caused largescale devastation. The Deputy Commissioner finding no other alternative to save the villagers, immediately called in the Army to carry out rescue operations.
The flood has left a trail of destruction at these villages as many were rendered homeless with their houses damaged in the flood.
The roads at Ratanpur and Chataibari villages also suffered extensive damage. The water gushing down from the hills of Bhutan submerged the villages for about 15 days.
Arun Baishya, aged 75, said he never saw such a devastating flood in his life. Baishya with his son and daughter-in-law have been taking shelter at the house of a relative as their home has been damaged in the flood.
Baishya also thanked the Deputy Commissioner for saving him and his family members from an imminent danger.
Before the flood struck, Baishya cultivated sali paddy on a plot of land measuring two bighas but his crop is now buried under silt deposited by floodwaters.
�We are not in a position to continue cultivation due to deposition of silt,� he rued.
Around hundred families of Ratanpur village have been severely affected by the flood.
Narrating their woes, Paramananda Das� wife Anu said that they had borrowed money from a local �sanchay samiti� for farming, but the flood destroyed everything they had.
�The flood damaged our houses, which is now filled with mud and slush,� she said.
Nagen Das of Chataibari village is looking after his flood-ravaged house after all other members of his family had taken shelter at the house of a relative.
Suren Das, a vegetables seller of Ratanpur, was struggling to feed his family since his only source of earning has dried up due to floods.
He told this Correspondent that during the floods they had got some relief from the district administration, but after the floodwaters receded, they have not received anything.
If the government does not come to the immediate rescue of the villagers of Ratanpur and Chataibari, many of them will be left starving.
Pratibha Das, a villager, said they are living at a relief camp after the Army rescued her along with her two college-going daughters.
�We are not in a position to return to our home as flood took away everything,� Pratibha added.
The Ratanpur-Bherbheri and the Khatikuchi-Dhamdhama roads were also breached at several places, disrupting the surface communication facilities.
