Assam Flood Relief: 6-Month Loan Moratorium Announced as Death Toll Climbs to 80

In a major relief measure for people affected by the devastating floods in Upper Assam, the Assam government has announced a six-month moratorium on repayment of all types of loans for eligible flood-hit borrowers in Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat and Golaghat districts. The decision comes as the state's flood death toll has risen to 80, while more than 2.12 lakh people continue to remain affected.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, after chairing a special meeting of the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) attended by officials from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), NABARD, State Bank of India (SBI) and other commercial banks, said the relief package aims to ease the financial burden on families whose livelihoods have been severely disrupted.

Under the scheme, banks will identify genuinely flood-affected borrowers before extending the six-month repayment break. The Chief Minister urged those who have not been impacted by the floods to continue paying their EMIs as usual.

The government also announced that loan tenures can be extended by one to seven years, depending on the nature of the loan. In another significant measure, small retail shop owners whose businesses were destroyed by the floods will receive an additional ₹10,000 in their existing loan accounts without requiring any fresh collateral or mortgage.

To support the restoration of community institutions, the state will provide ₹1.5 lakh each to Namghars, traditional Vaishnavite places of worship, in the flood-ravaged districts of Sivasagar and Charaideo.

According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), two more people, including a boy, drowned in floodwaters in Sivasagar during the past 24 hours, taking the overall death toll this year to 80. Although the situation has improved compared to the previous day, Charaideo remains the worst-affected district with nearly 80,000 people impacted, followed by Sivasagar with around 71,000 and Jorhat with nearly 40,000 affected residents.

Authorities are currently operating 112 relief camps and distribution centres, sheltering more than 75,500 people across the affected districts.

Meanwhile, Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya conducted an aerial survey of the flood-hit regions and visited relief camps to review rescue operations. He assured displaced families that both the Central and state governments were committed to providing all necessary assistance. He also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were closely monitoring the situation.

The Chief Minister said the state has urged the Central government to recognise the Upper Assam floods as an "atypical, high-intensity, rapid-onset event" and sought a special financial package covering relief, housing, infrastructure reconstruction and livelihood restoration. The government has also highlighted that nearly 13,000 households in the affected areas are still without electricity, with restoration work continuing as floodwaters recede.