Millions In Flood-hit Bangladesh And India Await Relief

Authorities in flood-hit Bangladesh and northeastern India raced to provide aid to more than nine million people marooned after the heaviest rains in years killed at least 54 people across both South Asian nations.

Monsoon rains in low-lying Bangladesh have triggered catastrophic flooding in the northeastern Sylhet administrative division, leaving a quarter of its 15 million population stranded amid fast-rising waters and swollen rivers.

The situation in Sylhet has been worsened by waters cascading down from the surrounding hills of India’s Meghalaya state, including some of world’s wettest areas like Mawsynram and Cherrapunji that each received more than 970mm of rain on Sunday, according to government data.

Around 300,000 people have been moved to shelters in Sylhet but more than four million people are stranded near their inundated homes, compounding the challenges for authorities to provide aid, including drinking water and medical supplies.

Khalilur Rahman, a resident of Sylhet’s Sunamganj district, said flood waters had swamped the ground floor of his two-storied house and locals were using boats to move around the area.

According to Authorities, the neighbouring Indian state of Assam, where at least 26 people have been killed since heavy rains began around a fortnight ago, flood waters have started receding.

But 4.5 million people have been forced from their homes, with around 220,000 staying in makeshift shelters run by the government. Over a million hectare of farmland has been flooded.

The South Asian neighbours have experienced increasing extreme weather in recent years, causing large-scale damage, and environmentalists warn that climate change could lead to more disasters, especially in densely populated Bangladesh.