India reels from rural floods

B.S Prakash, chief of the disaster unit in southern Karnataka state, said 16 more people died overnight due to house collapses and flooding in rural regions.

Overflowing rivers and dams in the western state of Maharashtra, which bore the brunt of a week-long drenching that left more than 1,000 people dead, were emptying waters into neighbouring Karnataka, he said.

"A massive evacuation exercise is underway," Prakash told AFP. "More than 122,000 villagers have been evacuated (in Karnataka) so far and 3,200 villages are hit."

The state authorities had deployed boats and helicopters of the Indian air force to rescue and provide relief to marooned villagers.

"According to the state officials working in these regions, 200 villages have been inundated while 15 villages with a population of 20,000 have been completely marooned," Prakash said.

State government officials said 23,280 houses in the flooded regions had already been destroyed by the swirling waters.

Prakash said 83,000 hectares (205,000 acres) of crops were damaged in Karnataka.

Economic analysts warned the weather damage could shave up to one percentage point from India's estimated gross domestic product growth of seven percent this fiscal year.

"The damage in Karnataka state is estimated to be worth 5.8 billion rupees (129 million dollars) so far," Prakash said. "The whole administration is on alert as more and more waters are being released from Maharashtra."