GUWAHATI, July 14: The All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union (AAPSU) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a special financial package and urgent central intervention for relief and restoration work in the flood and landslide-hit state.
The student’s union has urged the Centre to declare the current situation a disaster of severe nature, release immediate assistance from the National Disaster Response Fund, and sanction a dedicated financial package for reconstruction of damaged roads, bridges, schools, hospitals and water supply systems across the state.
Over 97,000 people across all 26 districts have been affected by the ongoing spell of floods and landslides, with seven lives lost and 29 persons injured, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said.
A search and rescue operation is also underway in Tirap district for two schoolboys swept away by the Chatjo River, with one body already recovered.
The disaster has caused extensive damage to public infrastructure, with 150 roads, 19 bridges, 21 culverts, 221 water supply schemes, 58 government buildings and 156 power lines affected, along with damage to hydel projects, hospitals and schools.
Over 541 hectares of standing crops and nearly 1,010 hectares of forest land have also been hit.
AAPSU president Meje Taku stated that the scale of destruction ahead of the peak monsoon month of August, threatens to undo years of developmental gains in the state and called for sustained central attention rather than one-time relief measures.
The union has also demanded restoration of strategically important routes, including National Highway-13 and the approach road to the Sela Tunnel, both of which have been damaged in the latest spell of rain.
It further sought the constitution of a central assessment team to work with the state government and fast-track compensation for affected families, farmers and institutions.
