'It took everything from us': India's Assam faces worst floods in years

In the afternoon, the 18-year-old suddenly heard the sound of rushing water and people shouting. Patro helped her elderly parents and younger brother reach higher ground before returning to try and salvage some belongings. But by the time she fought her way back through the water, their house had been washed away.

Jul 28, 2026 0 239

'It took everything from us': India's Assam faces worst floods in years

In the afternoon, the 18-year-old suddenly heard the sound of rushing water and people shouting. Patro helped her elderly parents and younger brother reach higher ground before returning to try and salvage some belongings.

But by the time she fought her way back through the water, their house had been washed away. We had a television, a cupboard and a sofa.

What Happened

Every year, she said, floods swept through her village, Seleng Sumoni Pathar on the banks of the Jhanji River, a tributary of the mighty Brahmaputra, one of the world's largest rivers. Assam lies on the vast floodplain of the Brahmaputra, which flows.

Flooding is a recurring part of life in Assam - nearly 40% of the state is classified as flood-prone by India's National Flood Commission.
Government data says more than 600,000 people have been affected, with tens of thousands displaced and living in relief camps.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said districts in Nagaland and Assam received rainfall between about 435% and 490% above normal over that period, causing rivers to rise at an unprecedented speed.

Key Details

During the annual monsoon, heavy rain across the region increases the volume of water in the river. As the Brahmaputra flows across Assam's flat plains, it deposits large amounts of sand and silt, reducing the river's capacity to carry water and making.

But for Patro, whose parents are daily wage workers, the future looks uncertain.
Chief Minister Sarma said the government's focus was now shifting towards rehabilitation, with ministers deployed across the state to coordinate recovery efforts.
They were rescued the following morning and are now staying in a relief camp while waiting for the floodwaters to recede.

Why It Matters

But experts say flooding has worsened over time because of upstream deforestation, ageing embankments and heavier rainfall driven by climate change. Exceptionally heavy rain across parts of neighbouring Nagaland and Assam from mid-July triggered this year's devastating floods, which minister Pijush Hazarika.