Over one million people now affected by Indian monsoon by Darren Bett
On Wednesday the River Kosi in Bihar, in the north of India, burst its banks flooding all the major roads into the state. The number of people now affected by the Indian monsoon rains has risen to over one million since the start of the season. More than 1.2 million people across India have now been displaced by the monsoon floods, with 800 being killed in the state of Uttah Pradesh alone.
The monsoon lasts until September and is responsible for causing widespread destruction. The rains however are vital for the country’s agriculture and will bring much needed relief to some drier regions.
Despite the dramatic flooding, the impacts of the monsoon have not been as hard hitting as last year, which the United Nations deemed the ‘worst in living memory’. Around 2,200 people across South Asia died in the 2007 monsoon, with more than 31 million rendered homeless.
