Army, IAF Out As Floods Kill 150 In Assam

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The IAF helicopters are flying sorties round the clock to rescue the flood-marooned villagers and drop essential supplies for them

The army was also called in, but rescue operations were not always possible.

The worst affected area is the district of Goalpara where at least 90 villagers are still missing, officials said.

An estimated 172 villages in Goalpara village have been totally wiped out.

Goalpara's police superintendent Violet Barua told the BBC that rescue workers have recovered nearly 100 bodies from various parts of the districts in the past 24 hours.

Barua said at least 90 villagers were still missing and that the death toll was likely to rise further.

More than 120 villagers have been fully submerged, as the wall of water swept everything on its way on Saturday. "Villagers were caught unaware in their sleep. So many were washed away before they could react to the sudden flow of water," local resident Biju Boro was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.

"In some areas the army was unable to reach because of the strong currents," Goalpara district official A.K. Mazumdar said. "They could not even operate motor boats to reach the marooned people."

"Nobody expected a situation of this magnitude. The toll may increase – we have been unable to contact some of our officers in the field because all communication lines are down."

Also submerged are national highways and railway lines.

In Guwahati city, where several thousand homes went underwater, about 7,000 people took shelter in 17 relief camps, the state's chief minister Tarun Gogoi said.

Authorities have opened about 50 relief camps to provide shelter for more than 100,000 people left homeless by the floods, officials said.

The IAF helicopters are flying sorties round the clock to rescue the flood-marooned villagers and drop essential supplies for them.

However, thousands of villagers who have escaped the floods are still without food and water after nearly 24 hours, reports here said.

Water came sweeping down the hills from the neighbouring state of Meghalaya on Saturday after a week of heavy rains, catching many villagers by surprise.

Officials said neighbouring Bangladesh and Nepal have also been hit by floods, that left at least 44 people dead.

This year's rains and floods have already killed more than 2,000 people and left millions homeless in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. Most of the casualties occurred during the monsoon season, which usually lasts from June to September.