Bangladesh floods maroon thousands

Seven people had died and thousands have been forced to leave their homes in Bangladesh because of worsening floods. .

Officials said that nearly half a million people remained marooned in seven flood-hit districts in the country's north west and in the south.

The floods have also damaged crops and roads across the country and destroyed hundreds of thatched houses.

The deaths occurred when three people were killed in a mudslide in the coastal town of Cox's Bazar and four others succumbed to diarrhoea in the southern district of Noakhali.

River levels rising

Experts at the flood forecasting centre in Dhaka have warned that the country is at risk of moderate flooding by next week as water levels in major rivers are rising rapidly.

Most of the 150 rivers which criss-cross Bangladesh are now flowing close to their danger marks.

Experts said that major rivers like Jamuna and Padma could overflow at anytime within the next week if heavy rainfall continues upstream.

In the southern district of Noakhali, thousands of people remained stranded in their waterlogged villages.

District Administrator Mostafa Kamal Haider told the BBC that the situation had deteriorated further with heavy rainfall this morning.

Heavy rainfall

In the northern district of Rangpur, the flood situation has improved a little with water receding in the River Teesta.

District administrator Monirul Islam said that nearly 20, 000 people had to flee their homes last week when the overflowing Teesta flooded many villages.

In the south-west districts of Jessore and Sathkhira, heavy monsoon rain flooded nearly 100 villages.

Officials said that many schools in flood-affected areas had been closed down and turned into relief camps for sheltering people.

Floods in India

The authorities in India's eastern state of Bihar say at least three people have died of floods in the state while hundreds have been affected.

People seek safety on higher ground

The state relief commissioner, Navin Verma, told the BBC that the three died in flash floods in the state's Nalanda district yesterday.

He said three others were killed in Sitamarhi district when their boat crashed into a tree a few days ago.

Officials said a few districts in the state have been affected by floods.

But officials say the situation is not grave at the moment - although it may be a cause of concern if rains continued.

They say relief measures are being taken.