Four killed by landslides in Tripura after incessant rain; IMD predicts inclement weather over next 48 hours

Landslides due to incessant pre-monsoon rainfall killed four persons, including three of a family, in west Tripura on Friday. Three persons of a family — Shaniram Debbarma (40), his wife Amitbala (35) and their three-year-old son Abhi died in Subal Singh Para when debris fell on them around 5.30 am on Friday, while another eight-year-old boy belonging to the same family was injured and is being treated at a local hospital, District SP Ajit Pratap Singh said. [caption id=“attachment_4474827” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Chief Minister Biplab Deb visiting the water-logged parts of state. Image courtesy: Ayub Sarkar[/caption] In another incident, a man identified as Malendra Debbarma (65), also died around the same time at Kambukcherra. Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb declared a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin, a government press release said. Deb visited the spots and expressed his condolences. The two places are located about 35 kilometres from state capital Agartala and 10 kilometres from Khowai town. SP of Khowai district, Krishnendu Chakravertty said. Both the places are adjacent to Khowai district and the district police joined the rescue operation immediately after the incident. The incidents occurred after heavy rainfall since Thursday night. Many localities in Agartala town were submerged under knee-deep water. Both the houses were in the foothills and in both cases, they were buried under the debris as big chunks fell on them due to incessant rains in the last couple of days, Chakravertty told PTI. He said according to the postmortem report, they died of suffocation. Meanwhile, Deb, who promised to address the flooding issues in the state capital was touring the water-logged areas. He also paid a visit to Banamalipur to inquire about the inconvenience faced by the locals. He promised to address the drainage problems before the onset of next years’monsoon. “It is not possible for me to repair the whole drainage system of the city because it has been done unscientifically. Already Agartala has been declared as ‘Smart City’ and I have also immediately issued order to release Rs 7 crore for the maintenance of drainage system of the city. I might not be able to do much this season but from the next year onward our government will ensure that there will not be any flood or water logging problem in my constituency and in the entire Agartala city which the people are facing now”, Deb was quoted by The Northeast Today as saying. Heavy rainfall is unlikely to let up in the state as the Indian Meteorological Department has predicted inclement weather, including heavy to very heavy rainfall, thunderstorm, and gusty winds in parts of Tripura over the next two days. With inputs from PTI