Military helicopters and
the army are leading rescue operations in India's flood-hit northern
states, where 138 people are now known to have died.
About 10,000 people have been rescued in worst-hit Uttarakhand state over three days, PM Manmohan Singh said.
Tens of thousands of pilgrims are still stranded in Uttarakhand, where more than 100 people have been killed.
Flood-related deaths have also been reported in Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh states and neighbouring Nepal.
At least 22 people have been killed and 18 are missing in
landslides and floods triggered by heavy rainfall in remote parts of
Nepal, home ministry spokesman Shankar Koirala told the AFP news agency.
He said that more than 100 homes - mostly in western Nepal -
had been damaged by the floods and the government had agreed to step up
relief efforts at an emergency meeting.
The monsoon season generally lasts from June
to September, bringing rain which is critical to the farming output of
both countries, but this year the rain in the north of India and parts
of Nepal has been heavier than usual.
'Distressing'
On Wednesday afternoon, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi flew over Uttarakhand to assess the
damage caused by the floods.
Mr Singh later described the situation there as "distressing"
and announced a 10bn rupee ($170m; £127m) aid package for the state.
"The maximum devastation has been in [the temple town of]
Kedarnath and its vicinity," he said. "The priority is to rescue the
stranded and provide urgently needed succour to those most needing it."
Mr Singh said in Uttarakhand, 102 people had died, but he feared that "the loss of lives could eventually be much higher".
Meanwhile, more than 5,500 soldiers and hundreds of
paramilitary and disaster management officials are working to rescue and
provide emergency supplies to thousands of tourists and pilgrims
stranded in towns and temples.
Military officials said five airbases were being used to help speed up rescue operations.
The situation in Uttarakhand was "really very bad", top
disaster management official Piyush Rautela was quoted as telling news
agency AFP.
The floods have swept away buildings and triggered landslides
in some places, blocking roads. More than 20 bridges have collapsed.
Portions of a Hindu temple in Kedarnath were washed away and
the shrine was "submerged in mud and slush", Uttarakhand disaster relief
minister Jaspal Arya said.
India's Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said more than 62,000 pilgrims were stranded at various places.
'Harrowing trip'
Most of the pilgrims - bound for local Himalayan shrines - are
stranded in Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts after roads
caved in and bridges collapsed.
Some of the pilgrims who are stranded in a guest house in
Joshimath town spoke to the BBC Hindi's Shalini Joshi about their
ordeal.
"We were stuck in the car for 14 hours, we spent the entire
night there. The mountains were collapsing above us, while a river in
spate was raging below us," Delhi resident Asha Mahajan said.
"There was a huge traffic jam, we could neither go forward, nor move
back. Anything could have happened. It was raining heavily and we were
afraid that there might be a landslide. Thank God we are all right," she
added.
"This is the first time we've come to the mountains. But
we're now stuck in Joshimath. We are so close to the holy shrine of
Badrinath, but we've been told not to go there. It makes me really said,
but what can we do? If I survive, I'll come back here," said Dineshbhai
Kishanbhai Patel who is visiting from the western state of Gujarat.
"It's been a harrowing trip for us," said Trilochan Singh
from Mumbai city. "We hear the roads are all broken, cars and shops have
been swept away. It is frightening. We are very lucky to be alive."
Local officials told the BBC that the number of dead was
expected to rise as rescue workers had still not reached many affected
areas.
In Himachal Pradesh, where at least 10 people have been
killed in landslides, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh was himself
stranded in Kinnaur district for nearly 60 hours.
He was evacuated on Tuesday by a helicopter hired by his Congress party, reports said.
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Sources :
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-22963870
