Every June, as clouds gather over Assam’s lush floodplains, a familiar anxiety sets in. People stock up on dry food, reinforce bamboo stilts under homes, and move cattle to higher ground. They’ve done this before. They’ll do it again.
For many in districts like Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, and Morigaon, floods are not a disaster—they’re a season. The Brahmaputra and its tributaries overflow annually, inundating homes, schools, and fields. The toll is devastating. In 2023 alone, over 1.2 million people were affected, with 70,000 displaced into makeshift camps.
But behind these numbers lie untold stories of grit and resilience. Like that of Rani Begum, a widow who runs a community kitchen in a relief camp, feeding 200 people a day. Or schoolboy Rahul who swims across flooded streets to attend a temporary class in a relief shelter.
Government response has improved over the years, with better early warning systems and quicker relief deployment. Still, embankments break frequently, and compensation often arrives late. Evacuees lack privacy, clean water, and medical help in the camps.
Experts argue that Assam’s flooding problem isn’t just natural—it’s political. Unchecked development, sand mining, and poor river management have worsened the impact. More investment in climate-resilient infrastructure is critical.
On the ground, NGOs like AIDMI and grassroots volunteers are innovating. Mobile water filters, floating classrooms, solar-powered boats—they’re not waiting for policy change. They’re working with what they have.
“We cannot stop the river,” says a farmer from Majuli. “But we can change how we live with it.”
The challenge ahead is not just to survive the flood, but to build systems that allow communities to thrive in spite of it. Until then, they will continue racing against the rain—year after year, with courage that demands more than sympathy. It demands action.
