India death toll from floods nears 1,000
(AFP)
Updated: 2005-08-01 08:55

MUMBAI - Torrential rain lashed Mumbai again, disrupting flights, hampering rescue efforts and bringing more misery as the death toll from the heaviest downpours in the Indian city's history neared 1,000.

Authorities issued new flood alerts and appealed to residents to stay indoors as the Mumbai Meteorological Department predicted "heavy rainfall" in the next 48 hours in Maharashtra and adjoining states.

The city's low-lying suburbs were again flooded knee-deep as police urged people not to travel on certain routes and rail services were disrupted or cancelled. Many trees were uprooted across the city.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered federal assistance to Maharashtra state and ordered the Indian military to extend all help to communities cut off by the floods.

"The prime minister spoke to Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, offering him central assistance and spent most part of Sunday monitoring the situation in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra," said Singh's spokesman Sanjaya Baru.

"The armed forces have been asked to provide boats to facilitate communication in flooded areas," he added.

State water authorities meanwhile discharged a brimming dam to prevent a catastrophic accident, the Press Trust of India said, adding that gushing waters from the Koyna reservoir had cut off 50 villages in the Satara district.

Flooding and landslides have claimed 969 lives in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra since the rain began last Monday, with 47 more bodies being recovered overnight, police said.

Flooding again plagued the district of Raigad, 170 kilometers (105 miles) south of Mumbai, where landslides last week buried scores of people.

Incoming flights at Mumbai's airport -- India's busiest -- were diverted while outbound flights were frozen due to poor visibility. International and domestic flights resumed later in the day when the downpour eased.

The airport was shut for two days last week due with flights resuming late Thursday. On Saturday an Air India plane carrying more than 300 passengers skidded off the runway.

Large swathes of the city of 15 million lay submerged after 944.2 millimeters (37.1 inches) of rains fell in a one-day period ending mid-morning Wednesday, the most rainfall ever recorded in a single day in India.

From Thursday the waters had began to recede, leaving mounds of garbage and thousands of bloated animal carcasses.

Despite Sunday's rain soldiers, police and rescue workers pressed on with "Operation Recovery", using bulldozers, cranes and bare hands to remove rubble from areas hit by landslides. Scores are still feared buried.

Some 130,000 municipal workers were repairing potholed roads, unclogging drains and restoring electricity and drinking water.

Police spread out into the city and through loudhailers urged residents to remain home and not to listen to rumours.

"They are telling us not to believe in any false reports and contact them to confirm any rumour that is doing the rounds," said Sanjay Kumar, a resident of the northern suburb of Thane.

Police chief A.N. Roy said the step was a "precautionary" one.

"The rumours have to be stopped and we are taking every step towards that direction. There is no reason for panic," he said. On Thursday 18 people died in a stampede created by rumours of storm-created tsunamis.

Some 10,000 Mumbai residents took to the streets in parts of the city Saturday to protest growing shortages in drinking water supplies and power blackouts, witnesses said.

Worst hit was the central area of Kurla where residents said they had been without power for five consecutive days.

Mumbai Municipal commissioner Johny Joseph admitted "the administration is stretched and continuing rains are proving to be a hurdle" in restoring civic services.

"The latest spell (of rains) will definitely hamper our efforts," Joseph told AFP.

S.G. Danle, deputy municipal commissioner, said 30,000 health employees were working in the city and suburbs telling people how to prevent outbreaks of disease.

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