Flash floods and landslides after torrential rain over the last two weeks killed at least 69 people and injured 110 others in India鈥檚 northern Himalayan regions, officials said Friday.
Scores of people die each year during the rainy season due to flash floods and landslides across India, a country of 1.4 billion people.
Rivers swollen by lashing rain -- including the mighty Beas, which starts from the region鈥檚 glacial peaks -- disrupted several routes in the state of Himachal Pradesh.
The 鈥榗umulative damage鈥� includes 69 people dead, and 110 others injured in different incidents over the past two weeks, the state鈥檚 revenue department said in a statement.
India鈥檚 meteorological department Thursday issued a fresh alert for 鈥榟eavy to very heavy rainfall鈥� in Himachal Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand, another picturesque Himalayan state popular with Indian tourists.
India鈥檚 annual monsoon season from June to September offers respite from the intense summer heat and is crucial for replenishing water supplies, but also brings widespread death and destruction.
Heavy monsoon rains claimed at least 30 lives and injured dozens in India鈥檚 remote northeast region in June.
It led to the Brahmaputra, another major river that originates in the Himalayas, overflowing into nearby towns and villages in India鈥檚 state of Assam.
Other instances of landslides and flash floods were also reported in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Manipur, with authorities pressing the Indian military to aid in relief and rescue operations.
South Asia is getting hotter and in recent years has seen shifting weather patterns, but scientists are unclear on how exactly a warming planet is affecting monsoons.
Last month, India鈥檚 financial capital Mumbai was swamped by monsoon rain that began two weeks earlier than usual, the earliest for nearly a quarter of a century, according to weather forecasters.
