Barpeta (Assam, India), report

On unflooded streets, the decor is the same everywhere. Vehicles honk their horns to pass through the makeshift refugee tents. Cows and goats that may have been carried away by the farmers were tied to the water’s edge.

Some threw tarps on the ground to dry the cereal. “ I can only save a few sacks of rice, everything else is washed awayexplained Kamal Uddin, 60 years old. With that, we don’t have enough money to last until the next harvest. I don’t even know when we can return to our homes. »

Some of the shelters available for climate-displaced people in Assam, in northeastern India, are being hit by the storm. “ For twelve days, floods hit our village non-stop »said Abu Bakr, 65. Like all elders, he had never seen such heavy rain. “ With my family, we left our valuables on the roof of the house and fled all the way here. »

This is a school converted into a temporary shelter. A roof, a toilet, but no electricity in this hangar whose windows overlook the water that stretches as far as the eye can see. “ Unfortunately we were asked to leave when class resumed »lamented a mother who was about to join a population group on the street.

A man laments the loss of his rice reserves, swept away by the waves.

In addition to hundreds of thousands of refugees, the floods that hitassam has caused at least 135 deaths. Gautam Gayan lost his brother. “ He wanted to cut the circuit breaker as the water rose but was electrocuted. I managed to free him from the current, I did word of mouth. But, due to a shortage of doctors, he died. »

“ There are people who drown but there are also people who die because they cannot access treatment, such as diabetics. »said Nilkamal, a 25-year-old medical student who volunteers to help people. “ Bridges collapsed and roads were flooded, making it very difficult to carry food and medicine. »

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pledged all possible assistance. “ We work in coordination with the central government to provide shelter and deliver the necessary food »said Gyanendra Dev Tripathi, director of Assam’s natural disaster response department.

On the spot, the victims seemed to be left alone. “ Due to lack of hygiene, they get diarrhea, fever, skin diseases », continued Nilkamal, who was afraid “ malaria explosion in these flooded waters ». Further south, the city of Silchar and its 150,000 inhabitants was completely submerged and emergency services were rendered defenseless.

“ In some places, the rainfall reaches 600 % more than usual »

This unparalleled disaster is expected to last for a long time as rain continues to fall in the Brahmaputra watershed. “ This year, the monsoon starts early, in early Aprildepicts Gyanendra Dev Tripathi. In some places, the rainfall reaches 600 % more than the seasonal norm. »

On climate change added to the soil concretization and massive urbanization. “ Our natural waterways have lost their ability to drain rainwater because they are filled with solid waste such as plastic »alert Partha Jyoti Das, environmental researcher and memberNGO Local crowd.

Children crowd at a refugee camp surrounded by water in Assam on June 24.

Gyanendra Dev Tripathi, director of Assam’s natural disaster response department, is reassuring. “ With the World Bank, we have launched a pilot village with elevated shelters and a new rice variety that is more resistant to flooding », explained government officials. A microscopic experiment with contested potential. Many experts believe that the Brahmaputra Valley could become uninhabitable.

“ Floods become so frequent and so prolonged that it is no longer profitable for farmers to plant and rebuild »Hakim Mirza Zulfiqur Rahman, researcher specializing in transboundary rivers. “ In Assam, climate migration to other Indian states, notably Kerala, has begun and will increase rapidly. »