Assam Asks Centre To Get Hydrological Data From China, Says Magnitude Of Flood Does Not Correlate With Rain

The Assam government on Wednesday said it has urged the Centre to raise with China the issue of sharing hydrological data with India.

The data, which could have been helpful in dealing with floods that have inundated large parts of Assam and wreaked havoc in the state, was not shared by China in violation of the terms of a pact signed by the two countries in 2013.

"We have already urged the Central government to take up the matter with China in this regard. The hydrological data is the riparian right of India and Bangladesh, and we must have data on how much water they have released from the dams upstream and all the other relevant details," Assam Health Minister and spokesman Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday.

According to Sarma, the magnitude of the third wave of floods, which hit the state after 8 August does not correlate with the amount of rainfall Assam and other northeastern states have received during that period.

"We are flagging this issue because the third wave of floods took everyone by surprise as there was no unnatural rain,” he was quoted as saying.

“We need to know where the water came from. There was also no warning from China. Unnatural release of river water could be a ticking hydrogen bomb. Hence the need to share data, as it will not only end speculation but also trigger debate and research which will benefit us in the long run," Sarma said.

According to the Economic Times, the Assam government wants to conduct a study on how the state was hit by a third wave water despite no massive rainfall.