TURA: The villagers of Meringipara, near Kalaichar, were sound asleep when flood waters surged into their homes in the darkness of Sunday night. They barely made it out of their homes alive rushing to the upper ridges with whatever they could lay their hands on.
The village is one among many affected by the devastating floods that ravaged Garo Hills on Sunday night and Monday morning. Not far is the Kalaichar Border Haat inaugurated by the then Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma in July, 2011.
The devastation caused by the torrential rains was so intense that the Border Haat at Kalaichar has been completely submerged by the flood waters. Wednesday was supposed to be the trading day by merchants at the Haat from both Bangladesh and India. That is unlikely to happen in the next few weeks.
A similar site of flooding and displaced people could be seen at another village nearby. Located 10 km away from Mahendraganj in the border belt of South West Garo Hills facing Bangladesh, the villagers of Meringipara were awoken from their slumber at around 4am.
“We lost everything. Our cattle and other livestock were washed away by the flood waters into Bangladesh. All our household items are now covered in slush. We were evacuated by the BSF personnel from Lukaichar outpost,” revealed village defence party secretary Aperson Sangma while speaking to The Shillong Times on Tuesday afternoon. He, along with other villagers narrate how BSF personnel used ropes and bamboo trunks to reach the stranded villagers to ferry them to safety of an RCC bridge on the main road which was soon converted into a makeshift camp where food was provided to the suffering villagers by the paramilitary force.
Much appreciation has been flowing in for the personnel of the paramilitary force by the affected people in many parts of Garo Hills.
The BSF had provided food and shelter for 400 people at Lukaichar border outpost near Mahendraganj on Monday and was at the forefront in rescue efforts at many places where their deployment was.
Even on Tuesday the troops rescued as many as thirty stranded villagers in Phulbari area. The paramiliatary force has also deployed a rescue boat at Chibinang to ferry stranded people.
The flood situation is similar all throughout the border belt where hundreds of villagers stranded by the flood waters are taking shelter on the main roads sleeping alongside their livestock in squally conditions awaiting help from the government.
There is an urgent requirement for safe drinking water and medical facilities at the relief camps which are slowly being streamlined as more relief operations reach the affected areas following a halt to the rains and the receding of water levels from the overflowing streams and rivers.
Meanwhile, a statement from the Border Security Force, Meghalaya Frontier, informed that several BSF BOPs on the International Border – Lukaichar, Nandichar, Tungichar and Mahendraganj – have been inundated under 2-3 feet of water.
Border belt roads have also suffered damages due to landslides at several places.
The Indo-Bangladesh border fence has also been damaged at places like Angratoli, Lukaichar, Kalaichar and Dipulipara and communication networks have also been disrupted.
The troops have been put on high alert to provide all possible assistance to the civil administration and the people.
Three BSF platoons have been deployed in flood affected areas in Garo Hills.
Local villagers were been provided with food and shelter at BSF BOPs.
Meanwhile, Sudesh Kumar, IG, BSF, has directed the troopers to ensure that maximum help is extended to the victims and local administration to fight the natural calamity.