Guwahati, May 5 -- Maitreyee Boruah

Sonitpur: "Izazul. Izazul.," Muklesa Parveen (22) called out for her husband as she saw the flood water seeping into her one-room hut on the night of July 2, 2024, in Assam's Bihagaon Chapori.

She lay on a wooden bed, nursing her infant, panic rising with the floodwaters as the power went out, plunging everything into darkness. But her husband was over 3,500 kilometres away in Tamil Nadu for work.

She kept calling for help, clutching her daughter close as the water steadily filled her hut. It was nearly an hour before neighbours heard her cries and came to help her evacuate.

"The water rose three feet above the ground. One wall of my hut collapsed under the heavy rain and strong winds. Floods inunda...