In Assam’s Nagaon district, the flood situation remains grim, affecting the lives of several people. The death toll in the State, due to deluge, has risen to 84.

The flood situation in Nagaon district and other parts of the State has been marginally improving, but nearly 14.39 lakh people are still affected.

In Nagaon district, nearly 79,000 people, including 20,612 children, are still affected by the deluge, as per the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).

The flood waters doused 184 villages under six revenue circles in the district and submerged 18231.8 hectares of crop area, as per the reports. The flood has claimed 84 lives so far across the State this year.

Rita Sahani and her family members, residents of the Jakhalabandha area, have been living in a small makeshift tent on a barricade for the last 10 days after the flood waters of the Brahmaputra River flooded her house.

Speaking to national media, Sahani said that there is still floodwater inside their house and they cannot go there. When the floodwater entered their house, they could not take out any household items, she added. Since the rain has continued, they have been facing a lot of problems. She said some food items from the administration have been received. In this situation, they cannot go out to do some work and uncertainty remains there.

Apart from Sahani and her family, many people in the area have been facing similar problems as the flood waters submerged their houses and they have been forced to live in makeshift tents on the embankment.

Another local resident, M Chouhan, also expressed his ordeal and said that all the household items, clothes, and everything got destroyed in the flood. They have a family of 15 members and they are living here now, he added. They have been facing many problems due to the flood, he further said.

Kalipad Das, another victim of the flood, said that he doesn’t know when he and his family will be able to return to their home because the entire area has been flooded.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said a bill to ban polygamy practices will be introduced in the state during the upcoming budget session of the assembly.

Addressing a press conference, the chief minister said the draft of the bill is being scrutinised by the Law Department at present.

He further stated that we are lining up to end polygamy in the state in the upcoming budget session of the assembly. He added it is with the Law Department for vetting.

On the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to be considered in an upcoming special four-day session of the Uttarakhand assembly starting from February 5, Sarma said his government was looking forward to the legislation on UCC.   

He said his government will monitor them and see if they can implement it fully. We have time to examine it and proceed accordingly, Sarma said while addressing the press conference.

According to reports, the budget session of the Assam assembly will start on February 5 and conclude on February 28.

In May 2023, the government constituted a four-member committee headed by retired Guwahati High Court judge Rumi Phukan to examine the legislative competence of the state legislature to enact a law to ban polygamy and asked the panel to submit a report within two months.

In August 2023, a panel headed by Phukan submitted its report on the polygamy ban possibility to the Sarma.

After receiving the report, Sarma said the committee had told him that the state has such a right, but the legislation must be given final assent by the President and not the governor.

The chief minister further said that since existing state laws on Muslim marriages don’t specify the eligible age of the brides and groom, the committee also suggested keeping a provision to mention the eligible age for marriage for all in the proposed polygamy law so that there is no lack of clarity with that and rules under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

A shocking case has been reported from Assam’s Silchar where a minor boy’s body was found hanging at the residence of BJP MP Rajdeep Roy on Saturday. According to Cachar Additional Superintendent of Police Subrata Sen, the body of the 10-year-old boy was found with a cloth wrapped around the neck.      

The police officer said the victim’s mother has been working as a domestic help for the last two and a half years at BJP MP Roy’s home and originally hails from the Dholai area.

BJP leader Rajdeep Roy said that he was informed about the incident. He further said that the minor’s body was found hanging at his residence, following which he was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.  

The body was sent to Silchar Medical College for post-mortem.

I was informed of an emergency at home and I rushed back. Upon reaching home, I discovered that there was a family in my residence. They were workers and they had two children, a boy studying in Class 5 and a girl in Class 8, BJP MP Rajdeep Roy said.

After some time, I came to know that the young boy had allegedly died by suicide by hanging himself. We immediately informed the police and they took the boy’s body for medical examination. Unfortunately, he was pronounced deceased, he added.

Roy said that when he spoke to Silchar Superintendent of Police, he was informed that the matter appeared to be a case of alleged suicide. Roy said that when this incident happened, he was at the party office. He assured that a police investigation would be conducted as per protocol and guidelines.

The BJP leader also said that the family was residing on the first floor of the building and the deceased boy was well-mannered, he also claimed that he personally enrolled the child in school.  

The BJP MP further said that the body was found inside the locked door when his mother and sister returned home after half an hour.