Assam’s flood toll has crossed 100 deaths, with over 700,000 people displaced and 1.2 million impacted overall as the scale of the damage keeps widening.

About 2,700 villages have been destroyed, with Sivasagar district in upper Assam among the worst-hit areas, along with Mon district across the border in Nagaland.

The flooding followed heavy rainfall in the Naga Hills between July 18 and 20, which triggered sudden surges in tributaries flowing into Assam’s lowlands.

A local vlogger described the scale of destruction, saying trees as tall as 30 to 40 metres came crashing down from the hills, leaving no homes standing, and calling it “a tsunami.”

Government officials have blamed excessive rainfall and climate change for the disaster, while opposition legislators and researchers argue that unregulated riverbed mining has played a direct role in worsening it.

Among the tragic stories to emerge is one involving two friends of different faiths who died together, after a Hindu man drowned trying to save a Muslim woman caught in the floodwaters.

The Brahmaputra river’s heavy sediment load steadily weakens embankments over time, and nearly 40 percent of Assam’s total land area is considered vulnerable to flooding in a typical monsoon season.

Assam floods almost every year during the monsoon, but this year’s disaster was unusual in that floodwaters from cloudburst-driven tributary surges arrived before the Brahmaputra itself reached peak levels, catching low-lying areas off guard.

The worst-hit districts include Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat and Golaghat in upper Assam, along with Mon district across the border in neighbouring Nagaland.

Researchers point to unrestrained stone mining along riverbeds such as the Dikhow as a contributing factor, arguing it has stripped away the natural cushioning that once absorbed flood surges.

Deforestation data shows Nagaland lost 14 percent of its tree cover between 2002 and 2025, with Mon district among the worst affected, a factor experts say has worsened runoff into Assam’s rivers.

Photo by EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

The India Meteorological Department has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall across roughly 20 states on Saturday, August 22, with East Madhya Pradesh facing the most significant warning of isolated very heavy rain.

Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are expected to see fairly widespread to widespread rainfall through the day, as the southwest monsoon system continues to bring active precipitation to northern India.

Heavy rainfall is also likely at isolated places across Assam, Meghalaya, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, and western Madhya Pradesh.

The northeastern states of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura are also under the IMD’s rainfall watch, alongside Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi.

Thunderstorm activity is forecast in parts of Uttarakhand, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and parts of the northeast.

Authorities in vulnerable areas have been urged to remain alert to the possibility of flash floods, waterlogging and landslides as the rain system moves across the country.

The IMD’s alert system uses a colour-coded scale, with orange and red warnings reserved for the most severe rainfall events that pose a direct threat to life and property.

State disaster management authorities in the affected regions have been placed on standby, with emergency response teams pre-positioned in districts identified as most vulnerable to flash flooding.

Farmers in the affected states have also been advised to take precautions for standing crops, as excessive rainfall at this stage of the monsoon season can damage yields ahead of the harvest period.

Road and rail authorities in hilly stretches of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir have also been asked to remain on alert for possible landslides that could disrupt travel through mountain corridors.

The IMD said its forecasts would be updated through the day as the monsoon trough shifts, with a fresh bulletin expected to refine district-level warnings for Sunday.

Photo by Koshy Koshy, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

The India Meteorological Department has forecast heavy rain and winds of up to 85 kmph across 12 states on Sunday, August 2, 2026, warning of rapidly changing weather over North, East and Central India.

The states under alert are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal.

Wind speeds are expected to reach 70-75 kmph in Uttar Pradesh, 65-70 kmph in Bihar, 60-70 kmph in Delhi-NCR, West Bengal and Punjab, and 50-60 kmph in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.

Bihar has been placed under a yellow alert, with heavy showers expected across Patna, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Purnia and Bhagalpur.

Uttar Pradesh districts including Meerut, Prayagraj, Agra, Jhansi, Bareilly and Mirzapur are likely to see heavy to very heavy rain with thunderstorms, while Delhi is expected to stay cloudy with light to moderate rain or drizzle through the day.

The IMD said the alert reflects fast-moving thunderstorm activity typical of the monsoon season, with lightning and gusty winds expected at isolated locations across the affected states.

The IMD’s nowcast bulletin, issued at 8:28 am IST on Sunday, tracks fast-changing weather systems over the next few hours and is updated multiple times a day during the monsoon season.

Isolated heavy rainfall is also forecast over Konkan and Goa, and Madhya Maharashtra, on August 2-3, while Arunachal Pradesh and Assam & Meghalaya face isolated very heavy rain risk from August 4.

Gusty winds and lightning are typically associated with the kind of fast-moving thunderstorm cells the IMD flagged for the day, which can cause localised damage to power lines, trees and temporary structures.

Residents in the affected states have been advised to avoid unnecessary travel during peak thunderstorm hours and to stay away from open fields, tall trees and metal structures during lightning activity.

Photo by Rajarshi Mitra, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0