Agartala: Tripura has experienced a severe disaster due to extremely heavy rainfall between August 19-23, resulting in devastating floods. The floods have claimed 33 lives, injured several, and displaced numerous families.
In a press conference held on Friday, the CPI(ML) called for immediate relief for the affected people. Addressing the press at the Agartala Press Club, Partha Kar, the state committee secretary of the organization, highlighted the extensive damage to agricultural crops, fisheries, livestock, and houses.
According to government data, an unprecedented 1.8 million people have been affected by the floods. Landslides have occurred in 2,032 places, and 1,952 roads have been damaged. Crops on 5,000 hectares of agricultural land have been destroyed, and 1.5 lakh hectares of Aman paddy crops have been damaged. Horticulture has suffered partial or complete damage to 5.614 hectares. The total loss in agriculture is estimated at Rs 1,018 crore, Rs 1,482 crore in fisheries, and Rs 23 crore in livestock.
Farmers and laborers have been the most affected. Approximately 2 lakh people from 2-5 lakh farmer families have taken shelter in relief camps and on higher ground. The lack of clean drinking water has emerged as a significant problem in the flood-affected areas. The families of the deceased have not yet received compensation, and the bank accounts of e-Shram card-holding workers have not been credited. Farmers have not received any assistance to make their agricultural land cultivable. Due to the lack of support, some farmers have started taking initiatives on their own, but this is not possible for everyone. Workers are without jobs, and the prices of commodities in the market have skyrocketed.
Therefore, the CPI(ML) demands that the state be declared a national disaster area immediately, a high-level committee be formed by the Revenue Department to prepare a list of the actual affected people, Rs 15,000 be provided from the natural disaster fund, and the families of the deceased be provided Rs 50 lakh and a government job each. They have also demanded Rs 20 lakh as compensation for the injured.
