At least 148 dead in rain-related incidents; UP, Bihar most affected

Several parts of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were on Monday reeling from floods following incessant showers over the past few days, with the death toll in rain-related incidents mounting to 148 in the country. The highest number of deaths 111 were reported from Uttar Pradesh, while 28 people lost their lives in Bihar since last week.  The weather department has forecast a long-delayed withdrawal of Monsoon and more rains for Bihar, including capital Patna where several areas still remain submerged, and food and relief material are being airdropped. India recorded its highest rainfall this Monsoon since 1994, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said classifying it 'above normal' as the season officially ended on Monday. However, rain-bearing winds still remain active over several parts of the country.

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Top ministers in states rescued from inundating waters

Of the 36 meteorological subdivisions of the IMD, two -- west Madhya Pradesh and Saurashtra and Kutch -- recorded precipitation in "large excess". In Patna, normal life was thrown out of gear, with several schools shut, roads inundated, and many shops, hospitals and houses submerged in knee deep waters.  Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi was "rescued" by a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) boat. LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan and his son Chirag Paswan are putting up at a hotel instead of their house in a posh locality of the Bihar capital. Three fresh deaths caused by drowning were reported on Monday afternoon, one from Nawada and two from Jehanabad district, raising the toll to 28 in the state.

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Forces swing into rescue and relief operations

An Indian Air Force helicopter commenced air-dropping of food and other relief material to people living in low-lying areas where water level is said to be several feet high. In Uttar Pradesh, since Thursday, 104 people have died in rain-related incidents, with the state government on Sunday cancelling leave of officials in view of the situation. On September 26, 36 people died, 18 people on September 27, 28 on September 28, 18 people on September 29 and four on Monday, according to officials.  In Ballia authorities had to shift about 900 prisoners to other jails after flood waters entered the barracks of the district jail located near the Ganga river. In Jharkhand, three members of a family died in Dumka district after a wall collapsed on them following heavy rains in the region.   

Delhi may witness scattered rains over the next three to four days, according to the weather office. In a year the rest of India witnessed "above-normal monsoon", the city recorded the lowest rainfall since 2014 with a deficiency of 38 per cent, the IMD said. The city recorded 404.1 mm rainfall this monsoon -- from June 1 to September 30 --  against the 30-year average of 648.9 mm, a shortfall of 38 per cent, an official said. With 10 per cent more rainfall than usual this year, India witnessed an 'above-normal' monsoon which officially ended on September 30, IMD data showed.

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Besides these states, as many as 13 deaths were reported on Saturday from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In Bihar, the disaster management department said six deaths have been reported from Gaya district where five persons were killed in a wall collapse while another person drowned in a river which has been in spate because of rains. More than 4,000 people, including women and children, were rescued from the flood-affected areas of Patna on Monday, the NDRF said. The force said it has deployed five teams, with about 45 personnel in each, to conduct rescue and relief works in the city.

In the hill state of Himachal Pradesh, light to moderate rainfall occurred in most places since Sunday evening, bringing the maximum temperature down by a few notches, the meteorological department said. In Gujarat, three women drowned after their car was swept away at a flooded causeway in Rajkot district on Sunday following heavy rains in several parts of the Saurashtra region. 

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