South Asia News

15 killed in monsoon-driven floods in northern India

Jul 9, 2010, 10:52 GMT

New Delhi - At least 15 people were killed in monsoon-driven floods in India's northern states of Punjab and Haryana with rivers breaching their embankments and inundating large swathes of land, news reports said Friday.

The deaths by drowning and electrocution occurred since Wednesday, the NDTV network reported.

While nine deaths were reported from Punjab, six people were killed in Haryana. Punjab and Haryana are considered India's primary agricultural states and are located near the capital, New Delhi.

The Ghaggar and Tangri rivers overflowed, cutting off many villages in the states. A major breach was also reported in the main Sutlej-Yamuna canal in the region.

Haryana's Ambala, Kurukshetra and Kaithal districts were the worst hit, and the army was called in to assist disaster management officials in rescue and relief operations.

More than 100,000 acres of farmland in nearly 250 villages in the districts were affected by the flooding, the IANS news agency said.

In Punjab's Patiala and Sangrur districts, 150 villages were affected by flooding. Train services to the region was disrupted since Tuesday because tracks were under water.

Weather officials predicted 'heavy to very heavy rainfall' in the states until Saturday.

Almost every year, monsoon-driven floods cause numerous deaths as overflowing rivers submerge villages and farmland.

According to the Home Affairs Ministry, 172 people have died in the monsoon season so far.

India's monsoon season usually runs from June to September.