Heavy monsoon rain in north Bengal made many rivers and streams swell and flood a number of areas.

In Malda district, some 300 families were shifted to safer places from the banks of the Mahananda as their homes were flooded when the river breached a part of its embankment. Water entered Mirjapur and Schoolpara of Old Malda municipality areas. The district administration is now repairing the embankment.

Another 700 families near the Mahananda riverbed were hit by floods. Water levels started increasing in Ganga and Fulhar, too. In Jalpaiguri, incessant rainfall in the Dooars and adjoining areas of Bhutan led to rising water levels of rivers and streams. The stream Hatinala flooded areas in Banarhat, Binnaguri and tea gardens. “Some 100 houses were flooded,” said Birju Rasaily, a resident of Banarhat.

The state irrigation department sounded a yellow (primary) alert in unprotected areas on both banks, from Domohoni on Jalpaiguri outskirts till Mekhliganj where the river enters Bangladesh. Minor landslips were reported from the hills.

The Met office in Calcutta said southwest monsoon was active over Sikkim and sub-Himalayan Bengal. “Heavy to very heavy rainfall is forecast in the region in the next couple of days,” said a source.