NEW DELHI: The flood situation Friday worsened in Bihar and the northeastern state of Assam with rampaging rivers inundating fresh areas and the toll in the rains and floods climbing to over 300.
The highest numbers of deaths,
72, were ironically reported from the desert state of Rajasthan while 4 _ 6 persons were reported missing in the state. Forty people each were killed in Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, 20 in Himachal Pradesh 11 in West Bengal, 10 in Arunachal Pradesh and one in Punjab.
Major rivers continued to rise, inundating fresh areas in Muzafferpur, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga, Khagaria and Bhagalpur districts, making the flood situation more grim in Bihar.
Standing crops in more than 10,000 acres were destroyed in the low lying areas of the Bhagalpur district. In Kahalgaon and Pirpainti blocks the flood waters submerged 12 villages.
In Assam all the major rivers, including Barak, Kathakal, and Kushiara and its tributaries in Barak valley have been flowing above their danger marks, inundating vast tracts of low lying areas following heavy rain in their catchment areas for the last several days.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 20, 1990
