India’s river islanders return home in between floods
Al Jazeera
Families from a floating island in Assam state move away with every flood, and move back home every dry season.
Yaad Ali is dreading the rainy season’s arrival this year.
The 56-year-old farmer from northeastern India’s Assam state lives with his wife and son on Sandahkhaiti island on the Brahmaputra River.
The island, like 2,000 others on the river, floods with increasing ferocity and unpredictability as human-caused climate change makes rain heavier and more erratic in the region.
The family move away with every flood, and move back to their house every dry season.
Ali said politicians in the region have made promises to provide relief for them, including during the current election, but little has changed for his family. For now, they contend with being displaced for large parts of the year.
