Torrential rainfall on June 28 unleashed flash floods, cloudbursts and landslides across Arunachal Pradesh’s 36-Nari-Koyu Assembly Constituency, leaving a trail of destruction and isolating several villages after roads and bridges were washed away.
Preliminary assessments indicate that at least six key bridges, including the Reme RCC Bridge, Koyu RCC Bridge, Sijo RCC Bridge, Sido Bridge and Doge RCC Bridge, have either been severely damaged or completely washed away. Landslides have also blocked several roads connecting remote habitations, hampering transportation and delaying relief and rescue efforts.
The worst-hit villages include Lipin, Mane, Tene, Sipu, Kakki, Koyu, Rotte, Kadu, Rina, Sido, Korang and Tabi Ripo. Extensive damage has been reported to wet rice cultivation (WRC) fields, orange orchards, arecanut plantations, fish ponds and irrigation channels, dealing a major blow to the local agrarian economy.
Several houses were either damaged or inundated, while drinking water pipelines, electricity poles and other public infrastructure suffered extensive destruction.
Kadu village witnessed some of the heaviest losses, with widespread damage to agricultural land and residential houses. Authorities also reported that road connectivity has been completely severed and nearly 1,000 cattle and goats were swept away by floodwaters.
In Korang village, the strategically important Rema Bridge, which links parts of East Siang and Lower Siang districts, sustained severe damage and has been declared unsafe for public use.
Educational institutions, healthcare centres, community halls and government buildings also suffered varying degrees of damage. Local leaders said several villages remain cut off as continuous rainfall and landslides have made it difficult to assess the full extent of the devastation.
Residents have appealed to the state government for immediate restoration of roads and bridges, financial assistance, relief and rehabilitation measures, restoration of electricity and drinking water supply, and deployment of heavy machinery to clear landslides and reconnect the affected areas.
Officials said damage assessment and rescue operations are continuing as authorities closely monitor the evolving situation.
