Cloudburst in Uttarakhand claims 34 lives

The death toll in rain-related incidents in Uttarakhand now touches 34, while five people were reported missing on Tuesday, PTI news agency reported.

Of the 23 deaths reported on Tuesday, 18 were reported from Nainital, three from Almora and one each from Champawat and Udham Singh Nagar districts, the news agency said.

Seven of the people reported dead on Tuesday had died in two separate house collapse incidents.

The official said that roads, bridges and railway tracks had been damaged in various areas of Uttarakhand.

Rain continued to lash various parts of the state, especially the Kumaon region, razing houses to the ground and leaving many trapped in the debris.

Nainital, a popular tourist resort, has been cut off from the rest of the state after three roads leading to the town were blocked by massive landslides.

All roads leading to Kaladhungi, Haldwani, Bhawali have been closed by landslides.

Meanwhile, Incessant rainfall in northern Bengal also resulted in landslides at various places, disrupting traffic movement on key roads. Road connectivity between Siliguri and Sikkim-Kalimpong was also broken on Tuesday.

Since Friday, the coastal southern state of Kerala was also battered by intense rain, resulting in the deaths of at least 27 people.

Torrential rain caused rivers to overflow their banks and flood roads, leaving vehicles submerged in muddy waters, while some houses collapsed too.