Parts of Mumbai still flooded

03 Aug, 2005

Transport in Mumbai resumed near-normal service on Tuesday as rains and floods finally let up after killing close to 1,000 people last week, but low-lying parts of India's financial capital remained under water.
Weather officials forecast more rains, but said they did not expect it to be on the scale that brought death and destruction to the sprawling city of more than 15 million people last week.
At least 942 people drowned, died in landslides or were electrocuted in floodwater in the western state of Maharashtra, including 429 in the capital, Bombay, and Federal Home Minister Shivraj Patil said 100 more people were missing.
More rain and floods on Monday had closed key roads and delayed trains in Mumbai, while severely hampering relief work.
On Tuesday, weather officials expected to see heavy rain of more than 6.5 cm (2.6 inches) along coastal areas, which pales compared to the record-breaking 94 cm that pounded Bombay last Tuesday and set off days of deadly flooding and disruption.
Patil told parliament that half of Maharashtra's 35 districts and more than 300 villages were affected. More than 52,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, many living near dams.
About 300 cases of cholera, gastro-enteritis and dysentry have been reported in the state, Kakine said. Hundreds of medical teams have been deployed across Maharashtra to treat the injured, distribute chlorine tablets and cremate the dead.
Losses for the state have been estimated at up to 20 billion rupees ($460 million), and small businesses alone have lost an estimated 10 billion rupees, according to an industry body.

Read Comments