Assam Government Calls for CBI Investigation into July Floods
CBI Inquiry Recommended for July Floods
File image of Assam CM wading through waters during his visit to flood hit areas in Sivasagar district (Photo: @himantabiswa/X)
Guwahati, Nov 3: The Assam administration has proposed a CBI investigation into the catastrophic floods that occurred in July, resulting in the loss of 106 lives, marking a shift from its previous stance on the matter.
After a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that a formal request would be submitted to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) within the next ten days.
“It is up to the Centre to decide whether the CBI will conduct the investigation. However, we have recommended it to uncover the underlying causes of the severe floods in Charaideo and Sivasagar,” Sarma stated.
The floods resulted in the deaths of 106 individuals, including 17 children, with 10 others still unaccounted for.
Among the districts severely affected were Sivasagar, Jorhat, and Charaideo, with Sarma noting that water levels reached heights not witnessed in over half a century. Sivasagar recorded the highest number of fatalities.
This decision represents a change in Sarma's earlier position. In August, he had dismissed calls for a CBI inquiry, asserting that experienced personnel would investigate the causes and provide recommendations to the government.
He had previously characterized a CBI investigation into the floods as “meaningless.”
The recommendation follows extensive discussions regarding the floods' causes and whether factors beyond heavy rainfall played a role in the disaster's magnitude.
On July 22, Sarma mentioned that the Assam government had limited time to react, having been informed of a cloudburst in Nagaland’s Mon district just ten minutes after it occurred.
“The Nagaland government notified the Chief Secretary of Assam within ten minutes of the cloudburst, but what significance does that hold?” Sarma remarked during a visit to Charaideo.
The following day, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) refuted claims of cloudbursts occurring in Assam and Nagaland in the days leading up to the floods.
The floods also sparked demands from the Opposition for an investigation into potential environmental violations and administrative shortcomings. The Congress party attributed the devastation in the three most affected Upper Assam districts to alleged unchecked illegal mining and administrative negligence.
In September, the Centre dismissed assertions that human activities contributed to the floods, attributing the July 2026 disaster to relentless rainfall in Assam and its neighboring states, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
Opposition parties had also presented a memorandum to Sarma in September, urging a CBI inquiry to determine if environmental violations exacerbated the floods' severity.
Recently, Sarma assured that an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the floods and the repair of damaged roads would take place during discussions with Raijor Dal leader Akhil Gogoi. These talks aimed to convince Gogoi to end his 14-day satyagraha, which demanded adequate compensation for flood victims.
With the state government now advocating for a CBI investigation, the decision to proceed lies with the Centre.