India, 26 people died from monsoon floods

(ANSA) - GUWAHATI, 20 JUN - At least 26 other people died as a result of monsoon floods and lightning strikes in India, while millions of people remained stranded in the country and in neighboring Bangladesh: local authorities said.

    In the northeastern Indian state of Assam, three people were killed by landslides and six more died from floodwaters; in the eastern state of Bihar, lightning from storms killed at least 17 people.

Assamè suffering from severe floods, with 5,140 villages in the 33 districts of the state submerged by water.

More than 100,000 villagers have been displaced.

In the neighboring state of Meghalaya, at least 16 people have been killed since last Thursday due to landslides and flooding rivers that have submerged roads.

   Monsoon storms in Bangladesh also triggered devastating floods that left millions stranded and killed dozens of people.

   Millions of people are still stranded, said MosharrafHossain, chief administrator of the district: "The emergency shelters are full of those affected. There is a huge crisis of food and clean water. Many are afraid to go home and many have lost their houses because of the water ".

   The receding water meanwhile is flooding the lower districts in Habiganj and Brahmanbaria, officials said.

In Jamalpur district, an eight-year-old girl was swept away by strong currents from her flooded courtyard and was later found dead.

    Floods are a regular threat in India and Angladesh, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency, severity and unpredictability for the two countries' 1.6 billion people.

(HANDLE).