Rains Halt India-Pakistan Train, Kill At Least 85
Date: 28-Aug-06
Country: INDIA
The "Thar Express", named after the Thar desert, began service in February this year, and runs between Munabao in the Barmer district of Rajasthan and Khokhrapar in Pakistan.
Rajinder Singh, director-general of the Border Security Force which provides security to the train, said the tracks had been inundated, forcing suspension of the service for a month.
"Efforts to assess the extent of damage to the tracks have been hampered by floods," he added.
About 50 people have been killed in Barmer, which borders the rain-lashed coastal state of Gujarat. Villages have turned into islands in this usually drought-prone region with waters at least 20 feet (6 metres) deep swirling around homes, officials said.
Road and rail links in the area were severely affected and the army was using boats and helicopters to rescue people.
Also in Barmer district, navy divers were searching for another 36 people reported missing in Malva village.
Meanwhile, 35 flood-related deaths were reported from other parts of the state.
The annual monsoon rains in Rajasthan have been the worst in at least two decades, officials say. Homes and crops have been destroyed and about 45,000 head of cattle swept away. Livestock is the mainstay of the state's economy.
"We have suffered a loss of over 17 billion rupees (US$366 million) due to floods," Kirori Lal Meena, the state's relief minister, told Reuters.
Barmer's average annual rainfall is 277 mm (about 11 in) but it has already received 577 mm (about 23 in) in the past week, affecting nearly half the district's 2-million-plus population.
(US$1=46.41 Indian Rupee)