The Indian Air Force on Friday, 31 August, rescued 19 people stranded on a partially-flooded island in the East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh.
“A total of 19 persons (13 adults & 6 children) were rescued from the Island. 06 persons including 02 children winched up & rest rescued to safety by landing at site,” the IAF said in a tweet.
The rescue operation was carried out on the request of the district authorities of Pasighat, the tweet added. It was undertaken after the water levels in the Siang river increased due to unprecedented rainfall and subsequent flooding in China’s Tsangpo river, The New Indian Express reported.
The Tsangpo river, which originates in China, flows through Arunachal Pradesh (as Siang) and enters Assam (as Brahmaputra).
China had earlier warned India that heavy rainfall may lead to floods in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.
While, after the operation, CM Pema Khandu tweeted that 30 people were rescued, an IAF tweet confirmed that 19 people were rescued.
The CM also thanked the IAF and the defence minister for their ‘prompt response’.
MP from Arunachal Pradesh Ninong Ering tweeted saying that warnings from China had been raised in the Parliament, adding that the government “must be proactive on such dangerous threats.”
Situation in Assam
Officials in the Dibrugarh district of neighbouring Assam are on also on alert and are keeping a tab on the water levels in the Brahmaputra, which is still below the danger mark, Hindustan Times reported.
China’s Flood Warning to India
On 30 August, China had alerted India about the rising water in the Tsangpo river, called Siang in Arunachal Pradesh and Brahmaputra in Assam, leading to possibility of floods in downstream areas, Ering had told PTI.
According to a Chinese government report, 9,020 cumec of water was discharged into Tsangpo/Brahmaputra river, as observed at various stations on Wednesday, 29 August.
Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio on 29 August had appealed to the Centre to help the flood-affected state, where incessant rains since July have led to a loss of 12 lives, Hindustan Times reported.
(With inputs from The New Indian Express and Hindustan Times)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)