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BFF-11
FLOODS-DEATH-TOLL-INDIA
Floods wreak havoc in India as death toll reaches nearly 600
NEW DELHI, July 29, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – Around 600 people have died over
the past couple of weeks, hundreds of thousands of houses were washed away or
greatly damaged, and millions of people rendered homeless in as many as six
states across India due to incessant rains leading to flash floods and
landslides.
In India, July-August are the monsoon months.
TV channels showed cars and other vehicles stuck on the roads with water
flowing over them. Incidents of flooding inside offices and houses were
reported from various places across the country, including some parts of
Delhi and neighbouring town of Noida.
According to media reports, the worst affected has been the southwestern
state of Maharashtra which has witnessed nearly 140 deaths so far.
Quoting figures obtained from the national emergency response centre,
English daily “The Times of India” carried a report saying that 126 deaths
were reported from southern state of Kerala, 116 from eastern state of West
Bengal, 70 from northern state of Uttar Pradesh, 52 from western state of
Gujarat and 34 deaths from northeastern state of Assam.
Maharashtra state has so far received 99.30 millimeters of rainfall, while
Kerala had 1451.85 millimeters of rainfall, Assam got 585.70 millimeters,
Gujarat 449.92 millimeters and Uttar Pradesh 171.10 millimeters.
In order to carry out relief and rescue work, the government has deployed
as many as 43 teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel in
the six floods-affected states. Each NDRF team comprises at least 45
personnel.
Besides the human deaths, huge damage has also been reported in terms of
deaths of cattle even as thousands of hectares of agricultural lands lay
submerged in rainwater.
Meanwhile, the river Yamuna that passes through parts of Delhi flowed
above the danger mark. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal held his cabinet
meeting to take stock of the situation.
All the concerned departments in the Indian capital have been put on high
alert to combat the situation if the river’s level rises further, causing
damage to the nearby residential areas.
BSS/Xinhua/MSY/0946 hrs