Rains wreak havoc in east India; 75 killed due to landslides, floods in Bengal, Manipur, Odisha

The toll of the recent heavy rains and floods in eastern India crossed 75 on Sunday. Fifty deaths have been reported in West Bengal, owing to lightning, wall collapse, electrocution, snake bite and drowning. Odisha reported a total of five deaths, whereas Saturday's landslide in Manipur killed 20 people.
Heavy to moderate rains continued to lash parts of eastern India even as the depression over Gangetic West Bengal prompted a forecast of heavy rain in different places. Rivers are approaching danger levels as dams release water, creating a floodlike situation. All of Bengal's deaths have been reported from the state's south, where a large number of people have been rendered homeless. Over 36 lakh people from more than 12 districts have been affected, said the disaster management department. CM Mamata Banerjee was compelled to put off her north Bengal tour to oversee relief efforts.

“Several districts, including North and South 24 Parganas, Murshidabad, Burdwan and Howrah, have been affected. Disaster management teams are working on a war footing,“ the CM said.

Communication systems and transportation have been hit hard, with reports of building collapses from various places. Fishermen have been warned not to venture out into the sea on the Bengal coast. Nearly two lakh houses and 4,72,645 hectare of crops have been damaged. Over 2 lakh people have taken shelter in 1537 relief camps.

Jharkhand continued to reel under torrential rain for the third consecutive day on Sunday as district administrations and the state disaster management department went on high alert. Fire and emergency services, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Army and BSF units have also been mobilized.

“Till evening, all major rivers, including Swarnarekha and Kharkai, were flowing a little under danger level. Water levels in reservoirs are rising steadily , but are under danger mark,“ colonel Sanjay Srivastava, deputy secretary of the state disaster management department told TOI on Sunday . Though no loss of life have been reported, several mud houses were swept away , Srivastava said.

Light to moderate rains were reported in Guwahati between Saturday and Sunday in Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. However, Manipur remained dry after flash floods and landslides that killed 20 people on Saturday . The Met department has forecast heavy rain over the next few days in Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal.

The Met department also warned of heavy rainfall in north Chhattisgarh late on Sunday night. “It could continue till Tuesday ,“ IMD Raipur Director M L Sahu said.

In Odisha, over five lakh people have been affected by floods following cyclone Komen-induced rains, official sources said. Weather officers predicted moderate rainfall in the state this week.