Monsoon rains kill more than 300 people in South Asia

The Associated Press

NEW DELHI -- Landslides in mountainous Nepal killed 11 people, and eight were reported dead when their boat capsized in India, bringing the death toll across South Asia from monsoon flooding to more than 300.

Torrential rains that began in mid-June have caused landslides, building collapses, drownings, electrocution and waterborne diseases across India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Even as large areas of South Asia remained under water, officials in India worried that too much rain in the country's east could mean a weak monsoon -- perhaps a drought-- for the northern and western region, where farmers are still waiting for the rains to sow crops.

The Indian Cabinet met Tuesday and asked the Agriculture Ministry to collect reports on crop prospects.

Still, the flooding in India's east was likely to worsen with more rain forecast over the next few days, relief officials said.

At least 197 people have been killed in India, which has suffered the largest number of deaths.

In India's eastern state of Bihar, 23 new deaths were reported on Wednesday, with 15 drowned or buried in smashed houses.

Eight others were killed when a boat ferrying them to safety across the Burhi Gandak River capsized, said Upendra Sharma, a relief official.

In neighboring Assam state, water from the Brahmaputra River cut through its banks and poured into the capital, Gauhati.

Four people were killed Tuesday when a banana tree raft taking them to higher ground capsized, police said.

At least 5 million people have been displaced or marooned in their homes in Assam, and Indian air force helicopters dropped supplies to some, the government said.

In Nepal, landslides swept through five villages late Tuesday, killing 11 people, said Durgaraj Sharma, a disaster management official in the capital, Katmandu.

The government flew rescuers on helicopters to distribute food, cooking utensils and plastic sheets to build temporary shelters.

In Bangladesh, the rains have stranded more than 3 million people in their flooded homes and killed 55 others, most of them children who drowned.

In Pakistan, five people have been killed by collapsing homes or roofs, officials said.