Monsoon fury unabated; toll 72

People stand on the remains of a flood damaged road alongside the River Alaknanda in Chamoli district in the northern state of Uttarakhand yesterday.

Agencies/New Delhi

Early monsoon rains have swollen the Ganges, India’s longest river, swept away houses, killed at least 72 people and left tens of thousands stranded, officials said yesterday.

The rains are at least twice as heavy as usual in northwest and central India as the June-September monsoon spreads north, covering the whole country a month faster than normal.

The National Disaster Management Authority said a response force of 12 teams of 45 people each had been in action since Sunday, in addition to the army and border police.

In the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, where officials say at least 60 people had been killed, India Air Force helicopters airdropped commandos to help rescue some of the tens of thousands of people unable to move because of the floods.

Among those killed were four members of the same family, who died when their home was hit by a landslide as they slept, in Kasta village near the state capital of Dehradun, local officials said.

Television footage showed bridges, houses and multi-storied buildings crashing down and being washed away by the swirling waters. A swollen river was seen engulfing a giant statue of Lord Shiva in the tourist hub of Rishikesh.

Rising water levels in some towns have also swept up cars, earthmoving equipment and even a parked helicopter, as a result of the surprise rains which have lashed the state since Saturday.

Roads in many areas have been destroyed, leaving hundreds of pilgrims stranded on their way to visit shrines in remote areas. Authorities have cancelled pilgrimage trips, fearing further rains and landslides in the state, often referred to as the “Land of the Gods” because of its many Hindu temples and other sites.

“We are on a war footing, we are working day and night,” said R Rajesh Kumar, a district official in Uttarkashi, where two national highways have been blocked.

The district has set up 32 camps to provide food and water for about 5,000 pilgrims and tourists caught by the floods while visiting local holy sites. The Ganges is sacred to Hindus.

Ruraprayag district was the worst hit with the overflowing Alaknanda river sweeping away dozens of buildings along its banks including 40 hotels, an official said.

“The situation is very grim. The meteorological office has predicted that the rain will continue for another three days at least,” government official Amit Chandola said.

In the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh, at least 10 people were feared dead, while more than 1,500 tourists were stranded, a local official said.

Efforts were under way to try to reopen the major roads to rescue those cut off by the rains, said J M Pathania, a top administrative official of Kinnaur district.

Two hydropower stations in the state that cater to the northern Indian grid have also been shut down.

In the eastern state of Orissa, flash floods destroyed at least 678 houses and damaged crops in storage, the state’s deputy relief commissioner, P R Mohapatra, said.

At least 18 people were killed in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Heavy rains also flooded parts of Haryana.

In the national capital New Delhi, people living in low-lying areas on the banks of the river Yamuna have been asked to move to safer places.

So far, the rains have not hit the summer sowing season in India, as planting of rice, sugar, cotton and other agricultural produce is not yet in full swing.

India is one of the world’s biggest producers and consumers of grains and about 55% of its farmland relies on the monsoon for water.

Heavy rain early in the June-September season makes planting easier, but if flooding persists, stagnant water can delay sowing or damage early rice shoots.