New Delhi, India —new flooding has killed at least 16 more people in northern India, bringing to 183 the number who have died during three months of monsoon rains, state-run All India Radio reported Friday.
Almost 10 million people in the north central states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been affected by the flooding. Thousands of people have been evacuated to higher ground and thousands of others have been stranded in their flooded villages, the radio said.
The agency said Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was to make an aerial survey of the flood stricken areas Saturday.
A new storm, pushed by winds of up to 60 mph, hit the coast Friday, sparking floods that cut major highways and railway lines in Uttar Pradesh. At least 16 people were reported killed in the new round of flooding.
A total of 143 people have died in Uttar Pradesh and 40 elsewhere “Relief and rescue operations are in full swing.”
Troops and paramilitary police were deployed to help distribute emergency food supplies to 40 flood affected districts in Uttar Pradesh.
Major rivers were continuing to rise to dangerous levels in Bihar. The Ganges was expected to rise an additional 10 inches by Saturday, the radio said.
Article extracted from this publication >> September 27, 1985
