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This article was reproduced with the kind permission
of the British Broadcasting Corporation

 

 







The BBC's South Asia Correspondent Jill McGivering
"Continuing torrential rainfall is causing chaos"

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Thursday, 25 July, 2002, 14:52 GMT 15:52 UK
Floods hit five million in India

Indian soldiers lead Assam villagers to safety
Troops have been called out to help with rescue efforts


About five million people have now been affected by worsening flooding in eastern India.


This year, the crisis seems particularly intense

At least 30 people have died in flood-affected Indian states while another 50 people have died in neighbouring Nepal after landslides caused by flash floods.

Continuing torrential rainfall is causing chaos.

In the Indian states of Assam and Bihar, main rivers have burst their banks in several places, submerging vast areas.

Hundreds of villages are now under water. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes.

Record damage

Details are sketchy because communications are disrupted too; officials in Bihar say at least 32 people there have drowned in the last few days.

Kathmandu man surveys flooded city street
Nepal is facing both floods and landslides

They are calling it the worst flooding for more than a decade, with four million people now affected.

In Assam, the collapse of more river banks has plunged three new districts under water.

The army has been called out to help with rescuing the stranded.

Here, another one and a half million people have been affected.

In Nepal, flash floods have triggered more landslides, killing at least 50 people on Wednesday alone. Many more are still missing.

Intense crisis

Many of the incidents are in remote villages, and it is hard for rescue workers to get to the scene.

Rickshaws struggle against floods in Dhaka, Bangladesh
This year's floods have affected the whole region

Getting emergency food and medicines to survivors is difficult too.

The combination of floods and landslides has forced thousands of people to leave their homes, with the central and eastern parts of the country worst hit.

The army and police have been called out to help.

Flooding is an annual hazard in this region during the heavy monsoon rainfall, but this year, the crisis seems particularly intense.