Uttarakhand: at least 46 deaths in floods in the Himalayan state

At least 46 people died in flash floods triggered by heavy rain in the state of Uttarakhand in northern India.

Pictures and videos from the state show flooded streets, sunken houses and fallen bridges.

Experts say the Himalayan state, a popular resort town, is seeing the effects of both climate change and rampant construction.

The floods also devastated the southern state of Kerala, where at least 26 people died in recent days.

Both states have experienced excessive rainfall this year, according to data from the Indian Meteorological Department. Kerala, for example, recorded rainfall of 453.5mm compared to 192.7mm considered normal at this time of year.

Uttarakhand, which normally sees rainfall of up to 30.5mm in October, recorded 122.4mm in just the past 24 hours. But meteorological officials said there is likely to be a “significant reduction in rainfall” by Tuesday.

Rescue efforts still continue in the affected areas, senior police officer Nilesh Bharne told BBC Hindi.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed 16 teams that have so far saved around 300 people.

Prime Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced compensation of 400,000 rupees (3,800 pounds; 5,300 dollars) for the families of those who died in the flood and another 190,000 rupees for those whose homes were destroyed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences on Twitter: “I am distressed by the loss of life due to heavy rains in parts of Uttarakhand. May the injured recover soon.”

Such short periods of excessive rainfall have become more common in the state, Bikram Singh, director of the regional weather center in Uttarakhand, said Hindustan Times newspaper.

He said it is likely that there have been more storms and intense spells that have not been recorded due to the lack of weather stations in many areas.

While he attributed the heavy rains to the climate crisis, experts have long pointed to other ecological changes in Uttarakhand that have caused landslides and contributed to other disasters such as flash floods. They cited hydroelectric power projects in the higher parts of the Himalayas and excessive and often uncontrolled construction on steep slopes causing damage to the fragile ecology of the region.

Experts also say higher temperatures have meant less snow in the Himalayas and this, coupled with heavy rainfall, is pushing large volumes of water downstream, triggering flash floods.