“ASSAM FLOOD”

A report submitted in partial fulfillment of the summer break internship program required
for the degree of

Bachelor of Technology

in

Civil Engineering

Submitted by

Bhabarnab Goswami

(190310001006)

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

GIRIJANANDA CHOWDHURY INSTITUTE OF

MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

GHY, AZARA, HATKHOWAPARA 781017

 CONTENTS
PAGE NO.

Acknowledgement i

Bonafide Certificate ii

Abstract iii

List of Figures iv

Abbreviation v

1. INTRODUCTION 1
1.i) Types of flood 2

2. MAJOR FLOOD EVENTS IN ASSAM AND IT’S EFFECTS 4

2.i) Flood Hazard map of Assam 9

3. PRESENT SCENARIO OF FLOOD IN ASSAM DURING COVID-19 10

4. MEASURES TAKEN BY GOVT. OF ASSAM 12

4.i) Flood reliefs, rescue and involvement of NGOs 13

5. ROLE OF CIVIL ENGINEERING IN FLOOD MANAGEMENT 15

6. FLOOD PRECAUTION 16

7. CONCLUSION 18
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The completion of this undertaking could not have been possible without the
participation and assistance of so many people whose names may not all be
enumerated. Their contribution are appreciated and gratefully acknowledged.
However, the group would like to express their deep appreciation and
indebtedness to the following:

Our Principal Prof. Thuleswar Nath Sir, H.O.D Prof. Dr. Krishnanga Gohain Sir
and Asst Prof. Mridusmita Mahanta Ma’am for giving us a helpful topic to
work on and also their endless support, kind and understanding spirit during
our case presentation.

To all family member, friends and classmates who in one way or other shared
their support, either morally and physically.

And special thanks to Govt. of Assam.

I thank you.

B.Tech 3rd Semester

BHABARNAB GOSWAMI (190310001006)

(i)
 GIRIJANANDA CHOWDHURY INSTITUTE OF
MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

AZARA-781017

ASTU

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE

Certified that this project “ASSAM FLOOD” is the bonafide work of

“BHABARNAB GOSWAMI, BISWENDU DEKA, DEVASISH DAS,
and DIPANKAR DEKA” who carried out the project work under my
supervision.

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

Krishnanga Gohain Mridusmita Mahanta

H.O.D of Civil Dept. Asst Professor

SUPERVISOR

(ii)
ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Rising flood problems among peoples and animals and loss of
properties and crop field are an increasing concern of Assam’s peoples.

PROBLEM: The purpose of this study is to investigate the areas where the
government using technology to tackle with flood problems in Assam and also
where they are lacking behind. And educate people, about flood precautions.

METHODS: Gathering the information about previous trends of flood from

post independence to recent flood events and placed in a systematic order and
also with their respective rescue and relief programs.

RESULTS: Analyzing the data, it was found that geography, physiographic

division and climate of Assam plays a major role in the occurrence of flood in
Assam almost every year. Also there are some man-made problems such as
creation of dams and deforestation. Erosion and landslides are also some causes
of flood in Assam.

CONCLUSION: The study definitively answers the question regarding the

causes of flood in Assam. Further studies are needed to establish modern hi-tech
machineries which can control flood more efficiently.

(iii)
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLE
PAGE NO
FIG 1.1) Flood affected area near Kaziranga 1

National Park

FIG 1.2.a) Areal Type 3

FIG 1.2.b) Riverine 3

FIG 1.2.c) Urban Flooding 3

FIG 1.2.d) Catastrophic 3

FIG 2) Flood Hazard map of Assam 9

FIG 3.a) Flood situation of Kaziranga 11

FIG 3.b) Flood affected people 11

FIG 3.c) Flood situation of Kaziranga 11

FIG 3.d) Nogaon Flood situation 11

FIG 4.i.a) River Embankment 14

FIG 5) Rescue of flood affected people 17

TABLE 1.i) Area, family, property affected 4

(1953-2005)

TABLE 1.ii) Area covered by Brahmaputra 4

(1912-2006)

TABLE 1.iii) Area, family, value of property 5

(2001-06)

TABLE 2) 2020 Flood report till June 30 10

(iv)
ABBREVIATION

Cumecs- a cubic metre per second, as a unit of rate of flow of water.

FREMAA- Flood and river erosion management agency of Assam

AWRMIS- Assam Water Research and Management Institute Society

NDRF- National Disaster Response Force

SDRF- State Disaster Response Force

NRSC- National Remote Sensing Centre

(v)
1. Introduction
This report contains the information on Assam Flood over the years for our
Internship program. It contains the study of disaster caused by flood in various
parts of Assam, how it affected the livelihood of people and animals.

Assam is the land of two mighty rivers – Brahmaputra and Barak. Each year
these two rivers and their tributaries cause floods in vast areas of Assam which
leads to human misery and devastation of nature. The flood situation in Assam
is becoming more critical and worse than in the past years.

The Brahmaputra features among the world’s top five rivers in terms of
discharge as well as the sediment it brings. At 19,830 cubic meters per second,
it ranks fourth in discharge at the mouth, behind only the Amazon (99,150
cumecs), the Congo (39,660 cumecs) and the Yangtze (21,800 cumecs),
according to data from a 2008 research paper.

FIG 1.1 Flood affected area near Kaziranga National Park.

1
1.i ) Principle Types and its causes.
a) Areal
Floods can happen on flat or low lying areas when water is supplied by rainfall
or snowmelt more rapidly than it can either infiltrate or run off. The excess
accumulates in place, sometimes to hazardous depths. Surface soil can become
saturated, which effectively stops infiltration, where the water table is shallow,
such as a floodplain, or from intense rain from one or a series of storms.
Infiltration also is slow to negligible through frozen ground, rock, concrete,
paving, or roofs. Areal flooding begins in flat areas like floodplains and in local
depressions not connected to a stream channel, because the velocity of overland
flow depends on the surface slope.

b) Riverine (Channel)
Floods occur in all types of river and stream channels, from the
smallest ephemeral streams in humid zones to normally-dry channels in arid
climates to the world's largest rivers. When overland flow occurs on tilled
fields, it can result in a muddy flood where sediments are picked up by
runoff and carried as suspended matter or bed load. Localized flooding may be
caused or exacerbated by drainage obstructions such as landslides, ice, debris,
or beaver dams.
Slow rising floods most commonly occur in large rivers with large catchment
areas. The increase in flow may be the result of sustained rainfall, rapid snow
melt, monsoons, or tropical cyclones. However, large rivers may have rapid
flooding events in areas with dry climate, since they may have large basins but
small river channels and rainfall can be very intense in smaller areas of those
basins.
Rapid flooding events, including flash floods, more often occur on smaller
rivers, rivers with steep valleys, rivers that flow for much of their length over
impermeable terrain, or normally dry channels.
c) Urban flooding
Urban flooding is the inundation of land or property in a built environment,
particularly in more densely populated areas, caused by rainfall overwhelming
the capacity of drainage systems, such as storm sewers. In urban areas, flood
effects can be exacerbated by existing paved streets and roads, which increase
2
the speed of flowing water. Impervious surfaces prevent rainfall from
infiltrating into the ground, thereby causing a higher surface run-off that may be
in excess of local drainage capacity. The flood flow in urbanized areas
constitutes a hazard to both the population and infrastructure.

d) Catastrophic
Catastrophic riverine flooding is usually associated with major infrastructure
failures such as the collapse of a dam, but they may also be caused by drainage
channel modification from a landslide and earthquake.

FIG 1.2.a) Areal FIG 1.2.b) Riverine

FIG 1.2.c) Urban Flooding FIG 1.2.d) Catastrophic

3
2. Major flood events in Assam & Its effects
Assam with its vast network of rivers is prone to natural disaster like flood and
erosion which has a negative impact on overall development of the state. The
Brahmaputra and Barak River with more than 50 numbers of tributaries feeding
them, causes the flood devastation in the monsoon period each year. The flood
and erosion problem of Assam is singularly different from other states so far as
extent and duration of flooding and magnitude of erosion is concerned and is
most probably most acute and unique in country.

During post independence period Assam faced major floods in 1984, 1962,
1972, 1977, 1984, 1988, 1998, 2002, 2004, 2012 and so these recent years.

A survey record of these years are given below in the table

TABLE 1.i) Average annual area flooded

Average Annual
Area flooded Flood Crop area Area Annual Average Annual Value of crop as
Period (in Mha) as % of total Population Damage Rs in % of total
Inundated area Affected lakhs damage
Total Cropped

1953-59 1.13 0.10 8.85 860,000 586 66%

1960-69 0.75 0.16 21.33 15,20,000 757 92%

1970-79 0.87 0.18 20.69 20,00,000 1,518 89%

1980-89 1.43 0.40 28.05 45,50,000 14,552 96%

1999-05 1.07 0.38 5.65 45,86,000 71,717 34%

TABLE 1.ii) Area covered by Brahmaputra over years

SL Survey period Area covered by the river Brahmaputra

1 First survey (1912-28) 3,870km^2

2 Second survey (1963-75) 4,850km^2

3 Third survey (2006 NESAC) 6,080km^2

4
TABLE 1.iii) Area, family, value of properties affected

Year Area Eroded in Ha Nos. of villagers Nos. of family affected Value of property (Rs
affected in lakhs)

2001 5348 227 7395 377.72

2002 6803 625 17985 2748.34

2003 12589.6 424 18202 9885.83

2004 20724 1245 62258 8337.97

2005 1984.27 274 10531 1534

2006 821.83 44 2832 106.93

2012: The 2012 Brahmaputra floods were an unpredicted flood event along the
Brahmaputra River and its tributaries due to significant monsoon rains in India,
Bangladesh and Myanmar. 124 people were killed by the flooding and
landslides and about six million people were displaced. The worst hit area was
the state of Assam in India. Flooding significantly affected Kaziranga National
Park, where 540 animals died including 16 Rhinos.

2013: In 2013, the Brahmaputra River and its tributaries flooded, triggered by
heavy rainfall at the end of June in the neighboring state Arunachal Pradesh
state through Brahmaputra river and its tributaries. This series of flood
submerged 12 districts out of 27 in the state of Assam, where more than
100,000 people suffered from scarcity of food and pure drinking water.
According to ASDMA’s flood report as of 13 July 2013 totally 12 district out of
the 27 district in the state were affected, the district are Bongaigoan, Chirang,
Dhemaji, Golaghat, Jorhat, Kamrup, Karimganz, Morigoan, Nagoan, Sivasagar
and Tinsukia. In which 396 villages affected and around 7000 hectares of
agricultural land were destroyed. Many roads and bridges were washed away
cutting all road links to rest of the state.

2015: 2015 Assam floods were floods in the Indian state of Assam which were
triggered by heavy rainfall at the end of August in neighboring Arunachal
Pradesh state through Brahmaputra river and its tributaries. The floods are

5
reported to have caused the deaths of 42 people and numerous landslides, road
blockages and affected 16.5 lakh people in 21 districts.
Flooding affected 2,100 villages and destroyed standing crops across an area of
440,000 acres. In the Dhubri district alone, more than 400 villages are now
almost impossible to reach making it difficult to send aid to the suffering
civilians. However, this is not the first time the Assam state has experienced
destructive flooding; the region is possibly India's most flood-prone state and
has experienced at least 12 major floods since 1950. Although always prone to
floods, the frequency of disastrous floods was increased in the area after
the 1950 Assam-Tibet earthquake, also referred to as the "1950 Great
Earthquake".

2016: The 2016 Assam floods were caused by large rains over the Northeastern
Indian state of Assam in July 2016. The flooding had affected 18 lakh people,
and flooded the Kaziranga National Park. As of 1 August 2016, 28 people had
been killed as a result of the flooding starting 17 July, according to a report by
the State Disaster Management Authority.
The north-eastern states of India saw heavy rainfall in July 2016. The state
of Assam faced around 60% more rains than it received in July 2015.The
rainfall resulted in flooding of various rivers and on 5 July the Brahmaputra
River had crossed its danger mark level in the seven districts
of Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Nagaon, Jorhat, Golaghat, Morigaon and Biswanath.
The floods have affected more than 16 lakh human lives, and people choose to
abandon their households and livestock, and escape with help of homemade
rafts. Mobile phone networks, along with power transmission, have been
hampered in many regions of the state. Around 4,90,000 acres of farming land
was affected by the floods. The Assam Branch Indian Tea Association (ABITA)
has estimated a 21-30% crop loss of Assam tea. The state of Assam had
produced 63.1 crore kg of tea in a year.
The floods have affected the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary and the Kaziranga
National Park, a World Heritage Site. As of 2 August 2016, around 300 wild
animals have been reported to have drowned, while around 81 percent of the
Kaziranga National Park was under water. This includes 21 great one-horned
rhinoceroses (Rhinoceros unicornis) and about 219 Indian hog deer (Hyelaphus
porcinus).The park officially reported deaths of "11 wild boar, nine swamp
deer, six sambar, three buffalo, two hog badger, one porcupine and one python"
in the time span of 25 July to 31 July.

2017: The 2017 Northeast India floods were caused by overflowing

of Brahmaputra river in the state of Assam in July 2017 affecting four Indian
6
states: Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur . As of 14 July
2017, at least 85 people were dead as a result of the flooding and 4 lakh people
have been affected and 5,00,000 have been homeless. Nearly 60 animals, mostly
deer and wild boars, perished in the floods.
The flood-affected 15 districts of Assam state that
includes Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Golaghat, Sivasagar, Cachar, Dhemaji, Karimganj,
Sonitpur, Hojai, Biswanath, Majuli, Barpeta, Chirang, Nagaon and Nalbari. It
has also inundated large tracts of Kaziranga National Park, Pobitora Wildlife
Sanctuary and Nameri National Park.

2018: The 2018 Floods in the Tributaries of the Brahmaputra affected

4.5 lakh people across the districts of Dhemaji,
Barpeta, Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Majuli and Dibrugarh in the state of Assam.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), total
12 persons lost their lives in the first wave of flood in the year. The floods
inundated 11,243 hectares of agricultural lands with standing crops in four
districts.

2019: The 2019 Brahmaputra Floods, till July 16, affected a total of 52,59,142
people, 1,63,962.02 hectares of crop area, in 30 districts in the state
of Assam. In the State, death toll rose to 59 on 20 July. At least 3,024 villages in
the affected districts continued to be underwater and 44,08,142 people are hit in
Dhemaji, Lakhimpur,
Biswanath, Sonitpurdistrict, Darrang, Barpeta, Nalbari, Chirang, Bongaigaon
, Kokrajhar, Dhubri, South Salmara , Goalpara ,Kamrup , Kamrup
Metro, Morigaon, Nagaon, Karbi Anglong , Golaghat
Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Cachar and Karimganj districts.
Notably, in this wave of floods, 2400 an endangered species of Indian
rhinoceros in Kaziranga National Park were badly affected by the Flood.

7
2.i) FLOOD HAZARD MAP OF ASSAM
Assam is one of the flood prone States in the country. In order to minimize the
impact of the floods in the State, Government of Assam approached National
Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO for identifying the flood hazard level of
various villages in the state.
An updated ‘Flood Hazard Atlas for Assam State’ was prepared which is
presented below

FIG 2

8
3. Present scenario of flood in Assam during COVID-19
Amidst this Corona Virus (COVID-19) pandemic situation, Assam has also
been stuck with heavy flood. The states is facing a rough time coping with both
the problems. Record till June 30 of 2020 Assam flood is given below table 2:

NO OF NO. OF CROP AREA POPULATION ANIMALS

REVENUE VILLAGES AFFECTED AFFECTED IN AFFECTED
DIST NAMES
CIRCLE AFFECTED (Ha) NUMBERS
AFFECTED

DHEMAJI 03 178 2948 71697 24962

LAKHIMPUR 04 48 711.30 28857 10153

BISWANATH 02 50 1490 3615 46188

CHIRANG 01 02 U/A 491 N/A

DARRANG 04 136 6414.50 83820 189684

NALBARI 05 105 2369.30 104272 171604

BONGAIGOAN 02 19 694.50 1410 8465

KOKRAJHAR 01 39 108.87 24575 10050

BARPETA 08 512 21930 486709 563495

DHUBRI 03 249 6704.50 40402 324898

SOUTH 02 62 1725 195312 92613

SALMARA

GOALPARA 04 144 3058 93996 126307

KAMRUP 04 104 444.4 7470 36400

MORIGOAN 02 209 10771 98804 45570

HOJAI 01 11 5378 11440 N/A

NAGOAN 02 22 906.70 17051 3692

9
GOLAGHAT 02 56 942.05 64152 10346

JORHAT 03 26 U/A 15882 44449

MAJULI 01 31 64 22005 53495

SIVASAGAR 02 34 240 22784 23075

DIBRUGARH 06 75 4140 31782 75412

TINSUKIA 03 116 4654 66054 96144

WEST KARBI 01 07 06 928 N/A

ANGLONG

TOTAL 66 2,235 75,700.12 14,93,508 20,05,002

FIG 3a) FIG 3b)

FIG 3c) FIG 3d)

10
4. Measures taken by Government of Assam

After the unprecedented flood in1954, the Government of India announced a

National Policy on floods compromising three phrases viz:
➢ The immediate
➢ The short term and
➢ The long term measures
The flood control activities in Assam started mainly after the announcement of
National Water Policy. Subsequently, “outlined plan for flood control in
Assam” along with various comprehensive plans were prepared and the priority
areas, which need immediate and urgent attention were identified.
Till date, the Water Resources Development has taken up works primarily for
the general development of the rural sector and for the protection of major
townships in both the Brahmaputra and Barak valley. Schemes have also been
taken up to relieve the drainage congestion in the cities and other important
areas.
➢ Construction of Embankments and Flood walls
➢ River training and bank protection works
➢ Anti erosion and town protection works
➢ River channelization with professional situation device
➢ Drainage improvement/ Sluices
➢ Raised Platform
➢ Flood forecasting and warning
➢ Flood zoning
The Water Resources Department, Assam has been implementing the above
mentioned flood management schemes from the beginning of 2nd Five Year Plan
and its continuing till now.
No long term measures have been implemented so far to mitigate the flood and
erosion problems of the state. Till date only immediate and Short-term measures
are implemented by the state above.

11
4.i) FLOOD RELIEF , RESCUE AND INVOLVEMENT OF NGOs

The Assam Government has intensified reliefs and rescue measures in flood
every year. In 2012, helicopters were deployed to drop food supplies to nearly
10,000 peoples in six districts where highway access was cut-off by the
flooding, over 280 relief camps were set up. In 2013, eight relief camps have
been set up in Dhemaji and Chirang districts where about 3,000 people have
been given shelter. In 2015, as it was most impactful flood over a decade, 241
relief camps and centre have been set up. In 2016, over 174,500 people were
affected, 19 relief camps and centre had been set up. In 2017, the state
government set up 128 relief camps followed by providing health and medical
facilities. In 2018, Rs 340 crores were released for flood relief by the centre,
211 relief camps were set up. In 2019, 226 relief camps and over 560
distribution centers and centre sanctioned Rs 251 crores for the flood-hit state.
In 2020, till now 517 relief camps had been set up giving over 44,000 people
shelter. No doubt, the government has taken several flood control measures to
lessen the menace and effects of flood in the state. Immediate assistance of
NDRF and SDRF, flood reliefs relief measures including setting up of relief
camps, free distribution of food, clothes, medicine, cash compensation for the
lost property etc. are undertaken by the government.
GO-NGO Protocol for Emergency Management has been developed in view
that it will be useful to have a protocol which both, Government and NGOs
would adhere to for effective, efficient, timely, and qualitative emergency
response and management in the state of Assam. The primary objective of the
protocol is to bring about transparency in the relationship between government
and NGOs and to provide a way of optimizing the effective, purposeful and
timely coordinated functioning of NGOs and ASDMA/DDMAs and other
government agencies in all phases of disaster management, namely pre-disaster,
during disaster and post-disaster.

12
Some names of Assam based NGOs which distributed reliefs over past couple
of years are mentioned below:
➢ 1.Feeding India, Guwahati Chapter
➢ 2. Youth Development Society
➢ 3. Leo Club of Guwahati Cosmopolitan
➢ 4. Khalsa Aid Team, United Sikhs Team along with AASYA (All Assam
Sikh Youth Association Jorhat)
➢ 5. JCI Kamrup Elite

FIG 4.i.a) River Embankment.

13
5. ROLE OF CIVIL ENGINEERING IN FLOOD
MANAGEMENT:
Civil engineer play a vital role in protecting communities from the impact of
flooding, which can happened at the coast caused by the sea, or inland caused
by rivers, waterways or excesses of water in the local drainage network, or from
surface water or groundwater. Flood risk management is received by extensive
research and planning as well as the actual infrastructure that controls water
level.

Below are some of the roles performed by a Civil Engineer:

➢ Preparation of Scheme design.
➢ Design and development of scheme and structures and structural plans.
➢ Community Engagement, feasibility and option analysis.
➢ Hydrological and hydraulic analysis and modeling.
➢ Economic appraisal and business case preparation.
➢ Environmental enhancement and mitigation.
➢ Technical and commercial reporting.
➢ Preparation tender documents.
➢ Public consultation and presentation.
➢ Cost estimates and profiling.
➢ Programming and planning.
➢ Risk management.
➢ Contact management.
➢ Root cause analysis and problem solving.
As a civil engineer in flood risk management sector, the work makes a real
difference to people’s lives. Extreme weather may be on the increase due to
climate change, bringing increased risk of flood events, especially to homes
built on floodplains and towns and cities at the coast. Hence, a Civil Engineer
safeguards lives and property.

14
6. FLOOD PRECAUTION
In any flooding or potential flooding event, the following actions should be
taken:

• Protection your home:

- Elevate the furnace, water heater and electric panel

if susceptible to flooding.

- Install check valves in sewer traps to prevent floodwater from

backing up into people's home.

- Seal walls in basement with waterproofing compounds to

avoid seepage.

- Keep an adequate supply of food, candles and

drinking water in case you are trapped inside your home.

• When flood is imminent:

- Listen to designated radio/TV emergency alert systems from

emergency institution

- secure/bring in outdoor furniture or other items that might

float away and becomes a potential hazard.

- Move valuable items and papers/document to upper floors.

• During flood:

- Seek higher ground. Do not wait for institution.

- Be aware of flash flood areas such as canals, stream, drainage

channels.

- Be ready to evacuate.

- If instructed, turn off utilities at main switches and unplug

appliances.

- do not touch electrical equipments if wet.

15
 - If you must leave your home, do not walk through moving
water. Six inches of moving water can knock you off your feet. Use a stick to
check the depth.

- Do not try to drive over a flooded road. If your car stalls,

abandon it immediately and seek an alternate route.

• After a Flood:

- Stay away from flood water- do not attempt to swim, walk, or

driving through the area

- Be aware of areas where water has recorded. Roadways may

have weakened and could collapse.

- Do not drink tap water until advised by the Health Unit that
the water is safe to drink.

- Once the water have receded you must not live in

your home until the water supply has been declared safe for use, all food-
contaminated rooms have been thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, adequate
toilet facilities are available, all electrical appliances and heating/cooling system
have been declared safe for use, all flood-contaminated rooms have been
thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, adequate toilet facilities are available, all
electrical appliances and heating/cooling system have been inspected, food,
utensils and dishes have been examined, cleaned or disposed of and floor drains
and sumps have been cleaned and disinfected.

FIG 5) Rescue of flood affected people.

16
7. CONCLUSION
Climate change is expected to affect flooding through changes in rainfall,
temperature, sea level and river processes. Climate change will exacerbate the
existing effects of flooding on infrastructure and community services, including
roads, storm water and wastewater systems and drainage, river flood mitigation
works, and private and public assets including houses, businesses and schools of
Assam. Climate change may change flood risk management priorities and may
even increase the risk from flooding to unacceptable levels in some places.

Managing present-day and future risk from flooding involves a combination of

risk-avoidance and risk-reduction activities. The treatment options could be a
combination of avoiding risk where possible, controlling risk through structural
or regulatory measures, accepting risk, emergency management planning,
warning systems, and communicating risk (including residual risk) to affected
peoples of Assam. The best combination will consider the needs of future
generations and not lock communities into a future of increasing risks from
flooding with implementing modern engineering techniques and equipments for
battling flood problems of Assam.

17