Floods, landslides triggered by heavy rains in India's northeast kill 16

Floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains have killed at least 16 people over the last two weeks in India's northeast, where more than 300,000 have been displaced from their submerged homes, authorities said on Tuesday.

The Indian army and air force have been assisting with rescue efforts in Assam, one of the worst-hit states, where a military helicopter flew early on Tuesday morning 13 fishermen to safety after being stranded for four days on a small island on the Brahmaputra, one of Asia’s largest rivers, officials said.

The Brahmaputra River, which flows 1,280 kilometres (800 miles) across Assam state before running through Bangladesh, overflows annually. However, this year, increased rainfall has made the river — already known for its powerful, unpredictable flow - even more dangerous to live near or on one of the more than 2,000 island villages in the middle of it.

In neighboring Arunachal Pradesh state, which borders China, landslides have wiped out several roads. Army troopers there rescued 70 students and teachers from a flooded school in Changlang district, police said. Similarly, heavy flooding in the states of Sikkim, Manipur and Meghalaya swept away roads and collapsed bridges.

A flood victim tries to fix a tin roof of his submerged house in Sildubi village in Assam, India, on Tuesday. AP

So far, more than 80 people across six northeastern states have died since the end of May due to floods and mudslides brought on by the rains, according to official figures.

Back in Assam, animals at the famed Kaziranga National Park, home to some 2,500 one-horned Rhinos, are moving to higher ground to escape the floods. Park rangers are monitoring their movements to ensure their safety, the state's chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Disasters caused by landslides and floods are common in the country's northeast region during the June-September monsoon season. India, and Assam state in particular, is seen as one of the world’s most vulnerable regions to climate change because of more intense rain and floods, according to a 2021 report by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, a New Delhi-based climate think tank.

A man wades across floodwaters from his house deluged by heavy rains in Assam on Tuesday. AFP

Another report says, annual monsoon rains covered the entire country on Tuesday, six days ahead of the usual time of arrival, the state-run weather department said, although rain totals are still 7% below average so far this season.

In a typical year, rains usually lash the southwestern coastal state of Kerala around June 1 and move northwards to cover the entire country by July 8.

India's summer rains, crucial for the third-largest Asian economy, spread nationwide by the end of the first week of July, allowing farmers to plant crops such as rice, cotton, soybeans and sugarcane.

The country is likely to receive above-average rainfall in July after receiving an 11% below-average showers in June, the India Meteorological Department said on Monday, keeping alive the possibility of higher farm output and economic growth.

Agencies