At least nine villagers have been swept away in flash floods in Assam caused by heavy rain and release of excess water from a dam in neighbouring Bhutan. Five members of a family,including three women,were drowned in Gangadhar river in Dhubri district when their boat capsized near Agomoni on Wednesday,official sources said. Three others travelling in the boat were rescued while the body of a villager swept away by the Borolia river in Barpeta was found at Tatarkuchi on Thursday. Two villagers swept away by the Jia Bhoroli river were also found at Pachmile in Sonitpur district while one person was swept away by Kaldia river in Barpeta on Wednesday. Sources said rivers in Sonitpur,Baksa,Dhubri and Barpeta districts were in spate following release of water from the Kurichu dam in Bhutan after torrential rain. The flash flood caused havoc in Barpeta and Baksa districts where over 150 villages have been inundated by the Beki river.
