Death Toll from Floods in South Asia Rises to More than 100

Guwahati, July 16, 2019:

More than 100 people have been killed and lakhs more affected by devastating floods and landslides across India, Nepal and Bangladesh in South Asia.

In the Indian state of Assam, among the worst hit areas, agencies were working on a 'war footing' to deal with the situation, the chief minister, Sarbananda Sonowal, said. NDRF and SDRF personnel have been deployed to rescue stranded people and relief centres are being set up across all the districts in the State.

Meanwhile, many politicians are demanding that the flood problem in Assam be declared as a 'national problem'. Rajya Sabha MP Biswajit Daimary has gone a step further and said that the flood-affected people can be rehabilitated if the Assam state authorities send the the report along with requirements to the Home Ministry so that these people can be taken care of.

About 43 lakh people in Assam, in north-eastern Indian, have been affected by flooding, while 83,000 have been forced to seek shelter in relief camps on higher ground.

In Bihar, in east India, a further 25 lakh people were hit by flash floods.

It is to be mentioned that floods in Nepal, India and Bangladesh during the 2017 monsoon killed at least 800 people and destroyed food crops and homes.

In neighbouring Nepal, 69 people were killed and 31 missing, with about a third of all districts hit by heavy rains, authorities said.

It has been reported that many of the deaths were caused by landslides that swept away houses.

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