Picture : Twitter / ANI
The flood fury continued in Bihar and Assam Tuesday with the death toll in the region mounting to 55, even as a red alert was sounded in Kerala after the weather office predicted extremely heavy rains in the state.
Heavy rains continued to lash Punjab and Haryana in the north, while the national capital received light showers for the second consecutive day.
An India Meteorological Department (IMD) bulletin said extremely heavy rains– over 204 mm rains in 24 hours– are likely in six districts of Kerala.
In flood-hit Bihar, 33 people have so far been killed in flash floods and 25.71 lakh people affected in 16 districts.
According to officials, unusual torrential rainfall in catchment areas in Nepal and subsequent massive discharge of water in rivers led to flash floods in Bihar where more than one lakh people have been moved to safer areas.
The deluge has affected 33 districts of Assam and claimed 17 lives. More than 45 lakh people have been hit by the nature’s fury, they said.
Ninety per cent of the famed Kaziranga National Park in Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state is still submerged, a statement from the Assam Ministry of Forest and Environment said. The Kaziranga National Park is home to the world’s largest population of Indian one-horned rhinoceroses.
With over 150 anti-poaching camps in the Kaziranga National Park affected by the Assam floods, the authorities are working round-the-clock to check poaching at the UNESCO World Heritage site.
According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) report, Brahmaputra river and its tributaries are flowing above the danger level in most of the affected districts, including in Guwahati.
In Guwahati, the flood waters of the Brahmaputra have submerged Uzanbazar, Kharguli and Bharalamukh areas.
The flood situation in Manas National Park and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary is also critical as vast stretches in them have been inundated and animals are moving towards the neighbouring highlands.
Five persons had died earlier in rain-related incidents in Mizoram.
