The New Nation - Internet Edition

Reuters, Bhubaneswar

Authorities battling floods in Orissa said on Monday they were struggling to rescue thousands of people stranded in remote villages as bad weather and swift river currents hampered rescue attempts.

More than half a million people in Orissa fled their homes when large parts of the state were flooded after authorities were forced to open sluice gates of a dam on the Mahanadi river last week, following heavy rains in the catchment area. The rising waters of the Mahanadi and its tributaries broke through mud embankments and swamped hundreds of villages in the coastal region.

At least 16 people have been killed and 300,000 rescued so far, but officials said another half a million people were still marooned. "Relief officials have not been able to reach many villages as the road links are cut off and boats cannot be used in the swift river current," G.V. Venugopala Sarma, a senior government official told Reuters.

"It is quite a serious disaster."

Television pictures showed hungry children rushing towards food packets dropped by helicopters on a small patch of dry land.

Hundreds of villagers were seen waving at passing helicopters from rooftops, signalling they wanted food.

Thousands of survivors have taken shelter on river banks, after flood waters destroyed villages and swamped hundreds of hectares of farmland.

"The water came suddenly and destroyed our houses and rice crops, leaving us no choice but to run," Kalpana Mohanty, a flood victim told television reporters.

Angry flood victims demanded relief, saying they had gone without any food for days.

"We managed to save our lives, but we are hungry and cannot go anywhere as we are surrounded by water," one among a group of villagers told reporters in a remote village.

Monsoon rains and flooded rivers have brought huge devastation across South Asia this year, killing more than 1,200 people, mostly in India and Nepal.