At least 31 people have died in flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains in four Indian states since Friday night, officials said on Sunday. In the hilly state of Himachal Pradesh alone, 22 people have been killed in the past 36 hours and several others reported missing after bridges and houses were swept away. "The deaths were reported from the districts of Mandi, Kangra and Chamba. Ten people are also said to be missing," a senior disaster authority official told the media. "Mandi is the worst-hit district, where 13 people have died so far," the official added. Local TV channels aired footage of rescue operations being carried out in Himachal. However, at many places, these operations have been hampered by heavy downpours. Read:India landslide death toll reaches 47 Indian opposition Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took to social media to condole the deaths and urge the Himachal government to provide relief to the affected. "There has been heavy destruction in Himachal Pradesh due to landslides, cloudbursts and floods," Gandhi wrote on Facebook this morning. Apart from Himachal, four deaths have been reported from the neighbouring hilly state of Uttarakhand and the eastern state of Odisha. One person died in Jharkhand. "In Uttarakhand in particular, a series of cloudbursts across the state triggered flash floods and landslides that have claimed four lives so far," a police officer said. In the eastern Indian states of Odisha and Jharkhand, five people have been killed in the past 24 hours. "Four of the deaths occurred in Odisha," another official said. Landslides and flash floods due to cloudbursts and heavy rains are common in northern India in the monsoon months of July to September.

Flash flooding at Death Valley National Park triggered by heavy rainfall on Friday buried cars, forced officials to close all roads in and out the park and stranded about 1,000 people, officials said The park near the California-Nevada state line received at least 1.7 inches (4.3 centimeters) of rain at the Furnace Creek area, which park officials in a statement said represented “nearly an entire year’s worth of rain in one morning.” The park’s average annual rainfall is 1.9 inches (4.8 centimeters). About 60 vehicles were buried in debris and about 500 visitors and 500 park workers were stranded, park officials said. There were no immediate reports of injuries and the California Department of Transportation estimated it would take four to six hours to open a road that would allow park visitors to leave. It was the second major flooding event at the park this week. Some roads were closed Monday after they were inundated with mud and debris from flash floods that also hit western Nevada and northern Arizona hard. The rain started around 2 a.m., said John Sirlin, a photographer for an Arizona-based adventure company who witnessed the flooding as he perched on a hillside boulder where he was trying to take pictures of lightning as the storm approached.  “It was more extreme than anything I’ve seen there,” said Sirlin, who lives in Chandler, Arizona, and has been visiting the park since 2016. He is the lead guide for Incredible Weather Adventures and said he started chasing storms in Minnesota and the high plains in the 1990s. “I’ve never seen it to the point where entire trees and boulders were washing down. The noise from some of the rocks coming down the mountain was just incredible,” he said in a phone interview Friday afternoon. Read: Satkhira flood washes away Tk8.28 crore worth of fish, crab, shrimp “A lot of washes were flowing several feet deep. There are rocks probably 3 or 4 feet covering the road,” he said. Sirlin said it took him about 6 hours to drive about 35 miles (56 kilometers) out of the park from near the Inn at Death Valley. “There were at least two dozen cars that got smashed and stuck in there,” he said, adding that he didn’t see anyone injured “or any high water rescues.” During Friday’s rainstorms, the “flood waters pushed dumpster containers into parked cars, which caused cars to collide into one another. Additionally, many facilities are flooded including hotel rooms and business offices,” the park statement said. A water system that provides it for park residents and offices also failed after a line broke that was being repaired, the statement said. A flash flood warning for the park and surrounding area expired at 12:45 p.m., Friday but a flood advisory remained in effect into the evening, the National Weather Service said.

At least 16 pilgrims have died in flash floods triggered by a cloudburst in the northern Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Saturday. Officials said the cloudburst occurred late on Friday evening, leading to flash floods that swept away several makeshift tents at the base camp of a holy Hindu shrine in the central government-controlled territory. "Sixteen people have been confirmed dead. About 40 still seem to be missing. No landslide, but rain continues, though no problem in rescue work," National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) chief Atul Karwal told the local media. According to the top disaster management official, four NDRF teams of 100 personnel have been pressed into rescue work. "The Indian Army is also in action at the disaster site," Karwal said. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to express his anguish over the loss of lives in the cloudburst. "Condolences to the bereaved families. Also read: India landslide death toll rises to 42 Rescue and relief operations are underway. All possible assistance is being provided to the affected," Modi wrote. Every year, thousands of Hindus visit the holy shrine as part of an annual pilgrimage. Also read: 24 killed in landslide in India's Manipur

More than 418,000 people have been affected in five districts of the country due to the flash floods, according to a recent report by the Needs Assessment Working Group (NAWG) in Bangladesh. The worst affected are those living in the low-lying areas of Sylhet and Sunamganj districts, it said. The flood situation has created an acute crisis of pure water, sanitation, food, shelter, and healthcare among the affected population, while also damaging the livelihoods of many. Several areas have been left without power for days over the past weeks, and roads and communications have been disrupted due to floodwater. Read: Richest countries damaging child health worldwide: Unicef Though floodwater has started to recede in many areas, new challenges have emerged with the risk of a waterborne disease outbreak among the affected population in the aftermath of the floods. Bangladesh Red Crescent Society Secretary General Kazi Shofiqul Azam said: "Severe flash flooding is battering the lives of millions in Sylhet and Sunamganj; people are in dire need of humanitarian assistance." Red Crescent teams are carrying out rapid assessment alongside relief operations, he added.

State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruk on Thursday said the damages caused by recent flash floods in Sunamganj were less compared to earlier years due to well-built levees. The state minister was talking to journalists after visiting flood-hit Shantiganj, Jagannathpur and Derai upazilas in Sunamganj when he asked the authorities concerned to take necessary actions to help the affected farmers. “From March 30 water from upstream hills rushed down in the first phase of the flood. Officials and staffs of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and other workers are giving all-out effort to protect the damaged dams since then,” he said. Also read: Sunamganj farmers fear crops loss as floodwater enters haors Zahid said,” In the next Boro season, the affected farmers will be given free seeds and fertilizers along with various food aids including Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) .” The government is providing 70 per cent subsidy to the farmers in the haor area to ease their burden of production cost, he added. “Upstream water running down hills following torrential rain in Meghalaya and Cherrapunji of India triggered the second phase of flash floods. On Sunday night, water entered Huramandira Haor in Derai upazila damaging 200 hectares of 1,000 hectares of cropland in the area, he added. Also read: Flash flood: 860 hectares of cropland go under water in Sunamganj According to the Department of Agricultural Extension a total of 5,660 hectares in 17 small and large haors, beels got inundated by flash floods so far.

Upstream water running down hills following torrential rain in Meghalaya and Cherrapunji of India triggered a second phase of flash floods to hit Sunamganj on Sunday, overflowing the extended Gurmar Haor in Tahirpur upazila. The flooding has risked some 2,000 hectares of crops that are close to maturing for harvest. Farmers have been considering bringing forward their harvest since the first phase of flash floods. Khasrul Alam, a farmer from Golabari village, said from Saturday night water level in the haor increased and broke the old permanent dams at the edges. “If the water continues to enter croplands throughout the day, crops will get damaged. If the water pressure declines in the meantime our crops will be saved,” he added. Following the instruction from the administration, farmers in the haor region were seen rushing to cut half ripened crops as Matian Haor, Shonir Haor, Mohalia Haor, Somsar Haor again faced the risk of being flooded. Also read: Irregularities in maintenance of haor dams irk Agriculture Minister In the last 24 hours, 13 mm rainfall was recorded in Sunamganj as upstream mountain flooding continued to raise water level in rivers and haors in the region. According to the Water Development Board (WDB), at 12pm on Sunday water level in the Surma River was recorded at 5.87 cm, having risen 80 cm in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the water level in Jadukata River increased 71 cm and in the Patlai River by 43 cm. On March 30, Sunamganj haor region was hit by the first phase of flash floods which inundated at least 5,000 hectares of land causing Tk 100 crores worth of losses to farmers. Karuna Sindhu Chowdhury, Chairman of Tahirpur upazila parishad, said they had been struggling to save crops of Gurmar Haor for the last 15 days. “With the assistance of farmers, local leaders, and WDB officers, a risky dam in the Bagmara area was reformed but the second phase of the flood has already overflowed the high edges of the haor. Usually we don’t need dams in these areas. Already locals are working to resist the water from entering,” he said. Mujibur Rahman, a farmer from Joypur village said, “We are guarding the dams every night along with the administrative staff.” Rayhn Kabir, Tahirpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) said, ”The dams are not broken but damaged and are not in a very good condition as water pressure keeps increasing. The dams in the Tanguar haor area are at most risk as any of them can collapse at any moment.” Also read: Flash floods damage crops worth Tk 100 crore in Sunamganj haors Iqbal Al Azad, Jamalganj UP Chairman said,”We have instructed farmers to harvest 80% ripe crops to reduce their losses along with protecting the dams.” “Rainfall is likely to decline both upstream and downstream from Sunday”, said Md Jahangir Hossain, Sunamganj Deputy Commissioner quoting the Met Office. “The dams made of earth have weakened after handling water pressure for the last 15 days. But if we can hold on for a day or two more by working on the damages the danger will have passed as upstream rains are the main reason for flooding here,” he added. According to the district Agricultural Extension Office, this year Boro paddy has been cultivated on 222,805 hectares of land in Sunamganj aiming at a production of 14 lakh metric tonnes. So far, harvesting has been completed on just 30,530 hectares of land - around 14 percent of the area cultivated. According to WDB, 536 -km crop protection dams in 12 upazilas were to be established and reformed at 12 upazilas in Sunamganj, under 727 projects spending Tk 122 crore.

Farmers in the Tahirpur haor area of Sunamganj fear they may be deprived of their Boro harvest this year, with the possibility of further flash floods in the days ahead on the back of heavy rainfall in the northern and eastern part of India. Boro paddy of Tahirpur upazila has just started ripening. Normally, farmers of the haor areas would go for harvest within 7-10 days. But another flash flood between now and then could damage the crop entirely.  According to the forecast of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, water level at some points of Surma, Kushiara, and Jadukata rivers may cross the danger level due to incessant downpours in the hilly areas of India including Assam and Meghalaya from April 10 to 17.      In the last week, around 7000 hectares of Boro lands of Tanguar haor, Eraliakona, and Gunnakuri haor under Tahirpur upazila became inundated due to an onrush of water downstream breaking past the protection embankment. Local farmers of these areas are now guarding the remaining embankments in phases as these are very weak and ill-constructed. Also read: Thakurgaon farmers fear crops loss after hailstorm The Water Development Board has repaired the 53-kilometre long submersible crop protection embankment and 10 closures through 68 Project Implementation Committees (PICs). The cost to implement the project was Tk 12 crore 83 lakh. However, the embankment and the closures are not perfectly repaired and repair work remains incomplete. The local administration along with the farmers are working to repair the cracks on the embankment.    

The government has ordered an investigation into the recent flash floods caused by breached protection embankments in Sunamganj, said State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruk on Monday, warning action for negligence. Already a six-member committee, headed by an additional secretary, has been formed to investigate the allegation, he said adding, it will submit the report within ten days. Talking to reporters at the Secretariat he blamed early rainfall in the first week of this month for the sudden floods. The recent flash floods in Sunamganj district damaged crops on nearly 5,000 hectares of land, said State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruk on Monday. From April 1 to April 6 the local met office recorded 1209 mm rainfall, he said. Also read: Thakurgaon farmers fear crops loss after hailstorm The government, he said, has taken preparation to help farmers cope with the floods, he said. Asked about alleged delays in repairing the breached dams Faruk said the work could not be completed due to stagnant water. “We started repair work in December and finished it in February. Up to 90% work has been done,” he said. The state minister said the government has taken projects worth Tk 494 crore. Another project of river dredging worth Tk 1547 crore is underway in the district. “If the projects are approved by the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) then we can start work in November. We have identified the problems and we hope there will be no problem next year,” he said. The leave of staff and employees of the ministry has been cancelled, he added. Also read: Flash floods damage crops worth Tk 100 crore in Sunamganj haors Besides, the government is thinking of waiving the loan of affected farmers in the district, he said. In 2017, the government suspended eight engineers, who were found negligent of duty, he said. The Anti-Corruption Commission will take action following rules against the eight suspended engineers, he added. Talking about the irregularities brought against the Water Development Board, the minister said “We will try our best to bring it to a tolerable level.” AKM Enamul Haque Shamim, deputy water resources minister, who was present at the press briefing, said action will be taken against those found involved in corruption in haor areas. “During a recent visit to Sunamganj, I have seen that breaches occurred in three places of 535-km embankments We managed to repair one spot but in another spot the depth of water is 50-60 meter while the repair work of another spot is going on,” said Shamim. Flash floods triggered by onrush of water from the upstream inundated Boro crops on 5,000 hectares of land in 14 haors in Sunamganj, causing loss of Tk 100 crore, according to local agriculture office. According to local DAE office, Boro paddy has been cultivated on 2.22 lakh hectares of land in the district this year and the production target has been set at 13.50 lakh MTs.

Farmers in the haor areas of Sylhet, Netrakona and Sunamganj are living in fear that they may be deprived of their boro paddy’s harvest, as flash floods following incessant rainfall in India’s bordering hilly areas have largely inundated their fields. Besides the affected farmers, the overt similarities with a similar chain of events in 2017 will have people worried across all sections of society. Back then, it prolonged a hike in the price of rice. Policymakers will be hoping and praying there is no repeat of that, given the upward pressure on prices that is already a reality gripping the populace. In Netrakona, the farmers of haor areas in Khaliajury upazila are busy harvesting their green and ripe paddy, fearing losses caused by onrush of water downstream. Executive Engineer of Netrakona Water Development Board ML Soikat said “The water level of Dhanu River has risen 10 cm on Monday noon due to rainfall in India’s Cherrapunji. As a result, the Dhanu river was flowing 58 cm below the danger mark.” Jashimuddin, upazila agriculture officer, said 370 acres of land in Kirtankhola, Laxmipur, Chunai, Baiddarchar, Katkailer Kanda, Taktar, Monijan, Lebria, Hemnagar, Gangabadar, Nayakhal, Bagani,Boilong and Dakatkhali haor area has been inundated, creating panic among the upazila’s boro farmers. Many farmers are trying their best to harvest their boro paddy before it matures, in order to cut down on their losses. Read: Char people of Kurigram rebuild their lives defying flood and erosion devastation Sujon Mia and Anwar Hossain, two farmers of Puranhati and Laxmipur villages in the upazila, said normally they would give it another 10-15 days to harvest the paddy, but they became helpless and went for early harvest –in which case their immature paddy would be used as fodder. On a positive note, Engineer Soikat said there is no report of damage along the 183-km embankment in the haor area, and they are trying to reinforce it by dumping bamboo and GO bags. In Sunamganj, the residents of Shantiganj upazila have been spending sleepless nights to protect the Shaldia Haor flood protection embankment since a crack was discovered on the surface. The water level of Surma has touched its danger level, and the water level of all the rivers including the Jadukata, Rokti, Boulai, Patlai, Naljur, Kalni, Chalti, Dharain and Chela, has increased due to the sudden onrush of hill water. The crop lands in Tahirpur upazila in the district are the worst-affected, as the flood control embankment for the Tanguar haor collapsed. Crop fields in Choto Kanlar Haor of Sadar upazila and Manuarkhola haor in Shalla upazila are also submerged for the same reasons as above. On the other hand, 25,000 hectares of boro paddy are at risk of inundation as a crack developed on the protection embankment at Karchar Haor in Bishambharpur upazila on Tuesday morning. Bishambharpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sadi Ur Rahim Zahid said they are trying their best to protect the crops. Deputy Commissioner Jahangir Hossain said this year, a 530-km long levee has been built, and it is difficult for the Water Development Board to protect such a long embankment. As such, he sought help from all stakeholders in taking steps to protect the dam. According to Sunamganj office of the Department of Agriculture Extension, some 222,805 (2 lakh 22 thousand 805) hectares of land have been brought under boro cultivation and they set a target to produce boro paddy worth Tk 3,200 crore. In Sylhet, farmers of Companiganj upazila are a worried lot, as their paddy fields too lie submerged, following the sudden onrush of waters in the last two days. Read: Reopening: Flooding robs of Kurigram students’ enthusiasm Some 400 bighas of cropland are already under water in Companiganj, according to the upazila agriculture department. And the worst hit areas are Fuksha Haor, Bhai Kuri, Moter Kuri, Dewar Kar, Kapna Kuri, Daila Haor, Akhai Kuri, Kanglaghati and Daram Haor of the upazila's South Ranikhai Union. Deputy assistant agriculture officer Pankaj said that although only 50 bighas of paddy land in Ichakals union is under water, the Patharchauli Haor protection dam is liable to be breached at any moment. "A disaster is waiting to happen," he told UNB. Alamgir Alam, chairman of East Islampur union parishad, said that with the help of locals, a dam was built in Rauti Haor. However, the dam breached in strong currents, submerging paddy fields, Alamgir added. Raihan Parvez Rony, upazila agriculture officer, said, If the flow of hill water continues, all the boro crops in the upazila will be damaged. Boro has been cultivated across 5,850 hectares of land in the upazila this year, said the officer. Fakhrul Ahmed, deputy assistant engineer of the Sylhet Water Development Board, said that an 8.561 km-long crop protection dam has been constructed at Haor area in Companiganj. And yet he adds: “Although the dam is strong enough, it will be difficult to protect the area’s crops in case of an overflow. Upazila nirbahi officer Lusikanta Hajong said the low-lying areas were flooded by the sudden onrush of hill water. However, our crop protection dams are still in the safe zone. A list of affected farmers is being prepared.

At least 17 people have died and over 100 others washed away in flash floods triggered by heavy showers in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, officials said Saturday. The worst affected are Kadapa district and the temple town of Tirupati. "Of the 17 deceased, eight were killed in  Kadapa after two state-run buses were swept away in the gushing waters when the Annamayya dam breached Friday," a senior disaster management official said. READ:  Container train service with Bangladesh to boost trade ties: India  "Though 20 passengers were rescued after a day-long operation, some 50 others are still missing. The rescue operations are on," the official told the media. Local TV channels beamed footage of hundreds of pilgrims stranded in floods in the temple town of Tirupati. Similarly, in Chittoor district, at least four people were killed in flash floods. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has carrying out relief and rescue operations in collaboration with the local police since Friday afternoon. Choppers have been pressed into action in the most-affected areas, officials said. READ:  10 Bangladeshis  return home after serving  2 yrs jail in India  Last month, as many as 23 people were killed in flash floods and landslides caused by heavy post-monsoon showers in the northern state of Uttarakhand. Uttarakhand and the southern states of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh have been witnessing the heaviest post-monsoon showers this year. In Kerala, at least 28 people died in October.