New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday to discuss the flood situation in the state.
Modi on Monday promised Centre's total support to five flood-hit states in rescue and relief operations.
"Centre assures total support in the rescue & relief operations. I hope the situation in the affected areas normalises at the earliest," he said in a tweet.
"HM @rajnathsinghji is closely monitoring the situation. He has spoken to the CMs & taken stock of rescue & relief operations," he said.
Read: As flood situation worsens in 5 states, PM assures Centre's support
At least 40 people have died and hundreds of thousands have been evacuated as floods hit vast swathes of central and eastern India, officials said Monday.
Days of heavy rain have caused the Ganga and its tributaries to rise above the danger level during the past 48 hours in about 20 districts of the states of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
Officials said at least 17 people have died in Madhya Pradesh, 14 in Bihar and nine in Uttar Pradesh because of drowning, electrocution or injuries from collapsed houses.
In Allahabad, water from the Ganges entered many residential areas, forcing people to move to safer areas. About 12,000 people were evacuated from low-lying surrounding villages, a government statement said.
In Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, flooding forced a halt to cremations at a main riverfront area, District Magistrate Vijay Karan Anand said.
In Bihar, 600,000 people were evacuated and the army and air force are on standby because more rain is forecast in the next two days, said disaster management official Vyasji.
