World

Over 110 killed by floods in India

2014-08-19 10:00:47

NEW DELHI, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- At least 110 people have been killed in flood-related incidents in the Indian states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar over the past few days, while tens of thousands over were affected, said officials on Monday.

At least 50 were killed by flood-related incidents, cloud bursts and landslides in Uttarakhand over the past few days due to heavy rains. The river Ganga which flows through the state is reported to be above danger mark, said officials.

In Uttar Pradesh where at least 48 were killed in flood-related incidents, officials say the crisis was triggered by overflowing rivers even as monsoon rainfall declined in the north, where rainfall eluded and the temperature remained high.

Rivers in the state, some of them from Nepal, continued to flow above the danger mark, flooding over 1,500 villages and prompting the government to call the situation "unprecedented", said local media.

The government has rushed National Disaster Response Force teams to the area while the state government has called in the Indian army to help carry out relief and rescue operation.

Meanwhile, at least 12 were killed and 400,000 affected by floods in the eastern state of Bihar, while floods were also reported from the northeast state of Assam.

India could face shortage of agriculture products this year due to insufficient rainfalls in the northern states, flaming fear of higher inflation, said Indian government.

Editor:Zhang Yi