Rain triggers flood like situation in Bengal

Kolkata, Sep 22 (UNI) Altogether 23 people were killed and one million affected in cyclonic storms and torrential rains pounding West Bengal for the past three days as life was thrown out of gear in Kolkata, sinking in a virtual deluge following incessant overnight downpour.

Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta said altogether nine districts were affected and 76,000 houses collapsed in different parts of the state as swollen rivers and discharge of water from barrages flooded vast areas.

With a low pressure over the Bay of Bengal triggering the calamity, the state government sounded a red alert in the worst affected Murshidabad and Birbhum districts, South and North 24 Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly, East and West Midnapore besides, Kolkata were the other affected districts.

The meteorological office predicted the calamity would continue at least for another 24 hours.

Irrigation Minister Subhash Naskar said 30 boats had been kept ready to marooned people in Murshidabad, while control rooms were opened in all the affected districts.

The State Government released a total of Rs. 17 crore for relief and rehabilitation of the affected people.

Three persons, including two children, were killed and one was injured when a mud house collapsed at Saibona village in North 24 Parganas district today following the overnight rain.

Police said 38-year-old Karak and his two daughters--aged below ten--were killed on the spot as two walls of their mud house collapsed at about 2 AM.

His 30-year-old wife sustained serious injuries and was admitted to the sub-divisional hospital in Barrackpore. One person died in Mathurapur in South 24 Parganas after being struck by thunderbolt.

Altogether 19 people had died in the severe cyclonic storms that lashed South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore districts early on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Kolkata experienced the worst deluge in recent times after being hit by a record rain since midnight last night.

Most of the areas in the city went under knee to waist deep water hampering movement of surface transport. With the rain water overtopping tracks at several places, train services from Sealdah and Howrah were also seriously affected.

Civil Defence Minister Srikumar Mukherjee said boats had to be pressed into service in the city's Amherst Street and the Port areas to evacuate people from the flooded low lying areas.

The rain, measuring 218.07 mm, which was the record this year, badly affected almost entire north Kolkata, Behala, Ekbalpur, Mominpur in the east, Bansdroni,Dhakuria and Bullygunge in the South and the posh Park Street, Camac Street and Minto Park areas in the central part.

In many areas, vehicles were seen half-merged in accumulated water while trams went off the route in many areas and bus service became scarce.

Meteorological Office recorded 218.07 mm rainfall in the past 24 hours which was the record this year.

However, the day largely being a holiday on account of Mahalaya, many people did not venture out of home.

But early in the morning thousands braved the inclement weather to take dip in the Ganga and offered prayers to the forefathers.

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