Dibrugarh, Aug. 30 -- The devastating floods that swept through Upper Assam in July were caused by a combination of factors rather than heavy rainfall alone, experts said at a brainstorming session at Dibrugarh University on Friday.

They pointed to extreme rainfall in the upstream hills, changes in the Dikhow river basin, river morphology, sedimentation, mining, deforestation, altered drainage and gaps in disaster preparedness.

The discussion was organised by the Centre for Atmospheric Studies, Dibrugarh University, under the theme "Need of an integrated understanding through trans-disciplinary approach for effective risk reduction and adaptation".

It examined how an extreme rainfall event developed into a disaster of such magnitude an...