Double whammy situation both flood & drought at once

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About half of India’s 600 million farmers have not been able to sow their main crop of the year – they do not have irrigation facilities and are dependent on rain. Official figures compiled by the central agriculture ministry show a 33% deficit in sowing. The death toll in South Asia continues to rise after flooding and landslides ravaged the border region of India and Nepal, leaving tens of thousands displaced and millions affected.

More than 6.7 million people in India have been directly affected by the floods, according to official statements -- about 2.5 million in Bihar and 4.2 million in Assam. Across the border area, over a million hectares of cropland (2,471,054 acres) has been submerged, roads and homes have been damaged, livestock has been swept away and killed, and entire wildlife sanctuaries have been cut off. A total of 2,000,000 people have been affected, and 1,100,000 people displaced by the flood waters in 55 blocks in nine out of the 12 affected districts

Worse still regions separated by few kilometers have drastic changes in flood situations, some of them have severe drought & some severe flood as shown in the map below. 'drought' to flood-like situation within days and back to drought situation is all due to extreme climate change effect on fast moving huge glacier driven rivers such as Ganges, Brahmputra,


fast flooding effect shown below, within a week 5.4 M people in 28 of the state’s 33 districts were coping with floods, with 2.25 lakh people living in relief camps.

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Nearly 1,900 Dead In Monsoon Rains, Floods Across India

June-July Floods more than 4Million affected Over 250 people have died in South Asia over the last few days after torrential monsoon rains caused flooding and landslides India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

India
In India the worst hit states are Bihar and Assam, where millions of people have been affected and over 200,000 displaced.

Flood-related deaths and evacuations have also been reported in Mizoram and Tripura, where a total of 5 people have died, and Uttar Pradesh where 14 people have died.

Recent heavy rainfall in Mumbai is said to have caused a building to collapse in the Dongri area of the city on 16 July, leaving dozens trapped and at least 14 dead. This is the second spate of rain-related deaths in the city in the space of just a few weeks. Dozens of people died after heavy rain in Mumbai and the surrounding state of Maharashtra in June this year.

Elsewhere in the country, India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a heavy rain alert for Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu from 18 to 20 July, 2019. Kerala experienced the worst flooding in its history from July last year when over 300 people died.

Bihar, India
Local disaster management officials in Bihar report that at least 2.6 million people are affected by the current flooding. Over 570 villages are under water across the 12 districts of Araria, Madhubani, Sheohar, Purnea, Darbhanga, Kishanganj, Supaul, East Champran, Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur, Saharsa and Katihar.

Over 126,000 people have evacuated their homes and moved to 221 relief camps.

As of 17 July, 2019, Bihar Disaster Management reported 33 dead. This figure has increased over the following 24 hours, with local media now reporting at least 67 deaths.

The rains appear to have eased in the state over the last few days, although rivers remain high. As of 17 July, India’s Central Water Commission (CWC) reported rivers in Bihar to be at or above the danger mark in 17 locations, including the Mahananda river in Araria district, the Bagmati in Sitamarhi and the Kamla in Madhubani.

Assam, India
In Assam, flooding has affected 5.7 million people in over 4,600 villages across 29 districts in the state.

Over 150,000 people have moved from their homes and are staying in 819 relief camps. According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority, 11 people have lost their lives.

Over 170,000 hectares of crops have been submerged or damaged. Wide areas of the Kaziranga National Park have also been submerged, posing a serious risk to protected wildlife.

Rivers were at or above the danger mark in the state in 12 locations as of 17 July, including the
Brahmaputra river in the districts of Jorhat, Sontipur, Kamrup, Goalpara and Duhbri.

More rain has fallen since the start of the severe flooding. Bongaigaon recorded 230mm of rain in 24 hours to 15 July and Barpeta 200mm. Mazbat, Darang district, recorded 130 mm the following day. However, no significant rainfall was reported in the state on 17 July.

Nepal
As many as 78 people have now died as a result of the heavy rain, flooding and landslides in Nepal that began around 11 July, 2019. Twenty-two people are still missing.

Almost 400,000 people (76,990 families) have been affected, with 8,694 houses either partially damaged or fully destroyed. Around 17,000 people have moved to relief camps.

Thirty-one districts in the country have been affected, with Mahottari, Dhanusa, Rautahat, Sarlahi and Siraha among the worst hit.

As of 18 July Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM) reported that there were no rivers above the danger mark in any parts of the country.

The rainfall has eased, although Kathmandu recorded 52mm of rain in 24 hours to 18 July. DHM said there were chances of heavy rainfall in eastern and central regions.

Bangladesh
According to National Disaster Response Coordination Center (NDRCC) in Bangladesh, 21 districts of northern, north-eastern and south-eastern Bangladesh have been affected by flooding and monsoon rains which began around 11 July.

Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) reported that 4.7 million people have been affected, with the worst of the flooding in Khagrachari, Netrokona, Lalmonirhat, Sunamganj, Bandarban, Cox’s Bazar, Chattogram,Sylhet, Rangamati, Gaibandha and Kurigram. Across the country 135,643 houses have been damaged.

According to the Pacific Disaster Centre (PDC) weekly report of 16 July, 37 fatalities were reported across the country (18 from lightning).

According to a report by CARE International, thousands of people have been marooned in their homes, schools have been closed and, in some cases, eroded to rivers, crops have been damaged, and livelihoods disrupted.

In the Rohingya refugee camps in south-east Bangladesh nearly 50,000 people have been affected, 6,076 displaced. Ten weather-related deaths have been reported in the camps since 21 April 2019.

The country’s Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre reported that, as of 16 July 2019, rives in 23 locations were flowing above danger level.

The flood situation worsened in the north of the country on 17 July when the Jamuna river broke through an embankment, inundating at least 40 villages in the district of Gaibandha and displacing more than 200,000 people.

Pakistan
In Pakistan, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) reported on 17 July that a total of 46 people have died in rain and flood-related incidents since the start of the month.

This figure includes 27 people still missing, presumed dead, after flash floods in the Neelum Valley in the Pakistan-administered territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Torrential rain in parts of Punjab Province from 15 July caused flooding and houses to collapse. As of 17 July, 10 fatalities had been reported, including 7 in Sheikhupura. The city of Lahore recorded 100mm of rain in a 24 hour period to 16 July and 150mm the next day.

As of 17 July, NDMA reported that the Kabul river at Nowshera, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, is in Medium Flood level. All other rivers are at or below normal levels.


Sept-Oct floods


NEW DELHI: Nearly 1,900 people lost their lives and another 46 were reported missing this monsoon season in rains and floods which affected more than 25 lakh in 22 states, Union Home Ministry officials said on Friday.
The highest 382 people died in Maharashtra, followed by 227 deaths in West Bengal in rains, floods and landslides that hit as many as 357 districts in the country.

According to the officials, 738 people were injured and nearly 20,000 animals were lost. The heavy rains and floods fully damaged 1.09 lakh houses, partially damaged 2.05 lakh houses and destroyed 14.14 lakh hectares of crops.

A total of 1,874 people died, an official said.

Though monsoon remains active in a few parts of the country, the season officially ended on September 30. During the four-month period, India recorded the highest rainfall since 1994, according to the India Meteorological Department.

In Maharashtra, where 22 districts were hit by floods, 382 people died, 369 were injured and 7.19 lakh people were forced to seek shelter in 305 relief camps.

The monsoon rains and floods hit 22 districts in West Bengal, where 227 people lost their lives, 37 received injuries, four were reported missing missing and 43,433 took shelter in 280 relief camps.

In Bihar, currently reeling under floods, 161 people have lost their lives and 1.26 lakh have taken shelter in 235 relief camps following the deluge that hit 27 districts in the state.

A total of 182 people were killed, 38 were injured and seven have gone missing in Madhya Pradesh, where 32,996 people took shelter in 98 relief camps set up in 38 districts.

In Kerala, heavy rains and floods claimed 181 lives and injured 72. Fifteen people were reported missing in 13 districts. As many as 4.46 lakh people in the state took shelter in 2,227 relief camps.

Twenty-two districts in Gujarat were hit during the monsoon season.

At least 169 people lost their lives, 17 received injuries while 17,783 people took shelter in 102 relief camps.

In Karnataka, 106 people lost their lives, 14 received injuries and six were missing due to rains and floods in 13 districts. As many as 2.48 lakh people took shelter in 3,233 relief camps.

COMMENT
The rains and floods claimed 97 lives in Assam, where 32 districts were hit by the deluge that resulted in 5.35 lakh people taking shelter in 1,357 relief camps.