Heavy rains and floods have once again brought many parts of the country to a standstill. More than 1,000 people have died in the floods across India this monsoon, and as sheets of incessant rain pummeled the vast region, worries grew that the death toll would rise along with the floodwaters.

According to the United Nations, at least 41 million people in Bangladesh, India and Nepal have been directly affected by flooding and landslides resulting from the monsoon rains, which usually begin in June and last until September.

Floods have affected many states -- mainly Assam, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal and Mumbai.

Mumbai floods

On Tuesday, Mumbai was soaked to the bone with torrential rainfall all day. As people scurried up the sidewalks, the wind tore umbrellas out of their hands. Busy intersections were deluged, and a building collapsed too, claiming at least 24 lives. Several television news channels reported that the city saw more rain in the past several days than any other time since July 2005, when severe flooding killed more than 1,000 people.

Bihar floods

The state of Bihar has witnessed floods more than any other state in India. According to a media report, floods swept nearly 19 districts of Bihar, affecting over 1.71 crore people this year. The flood death toll stands at 482 as of August 2017, the same report noted.

Bihar is India's most flood-prone state, with 76 per cent of population in north Bihar living under the recurring threat of flood devastation.

Bengal floods

According to PTI, heavy rains in July this year hit nearly 25 lakh people in about 170 villages in 11 districts in West Bengal. And over two lakh people were affected due to floods in Odisha. Rayagada and Kalahandi being the worst-hit districts saw innumerable people around them being washed away or their houses completely under the water and bridges collapsing by the heavy water flow.

"The floods of West Bengal have special characteristics. Heavy rainfalls at origin or catchment areas of main flooding rivers of the state cause flood, but these areas are mainly lying outside the state. West Bengal is flooded by water from adjoining states or countries," said the West Bengal Disaster Management Department.

Assam floods

In Assam, floods have become a recurrent problem and highly affect cattle, human life and crops. Some of the worst-hit years have been 1954, 1962, 1972, 1977, 1984, 1988, 1998, 2002, 2004 and 2012. This year, however, deluge proved to be one of the worst in 29 years.

Floods in 2017 devastated 21 districts of Assam and reportedly affected over 15 lakh people. Before this, the state was in the flood waters between April and July this year already. That flood left behind nearly 19 lakh victims.

Add up the two and the magnitude of the disaster becomes clear. In addition to massive human casualty and several deaths 85 per cent of Kaziranga National Park's area is reportedly submerged.

Here's the list of some of the worst floods in history that devastated states and lives of people:

Bihar Floods, 1987

In one of the worst floods in Bihar, 1,399 people and 5,302 animals lost their lives and nearly 29 million people were affected in 30 districts, 382 blocks, 6,112 panchayats, and 24,518 villages. The damage to crops were calculated to be 68 billion Indian rupees and damage to public property was at 68 million rupees.

Maharastra Floods, 2005

In the Maharashtra floods, approximately 1,094 people died. It occurred just one month after the June 2005 Gujarat floods. 52 local trains, 37,000 autos, 4,000 taxis, 900 BEST buses and 10,000 trucks were either damaged or spoiled. The financial cost was calculated to be 550 crore rupees.

Gujarat Floods, 2005

Gujarat flood is considered to be the worst floods in the history of India. The floods accounted for a loss of more than 8,000 crore rupees. The floods also caused a great financial and economic loss to the nation. More than 123 deaths were recorded and total of 250,000 people were evacuated. The day is referred as a 'BLACK DAY' in Indian history.

Assam Floods, 2012

The worst flood since the year 1998, took the lives of more than 120 people. The flood also affected 1,744 villages across nine districts and 70,000 hectares of crop land. It was reported that more than five million people were evacuated. Flooding significantly affected Kaziranga National Park, where about 540 animals died.

Uttarakhand Floods, 2013

In the Uttarakhand floods, the destruction of bridges and roads left about 100,000 pilgrims and tourists trapped. The Indian Air Force, the Indian Army, and paramilitary troops evacuated more than 110,000 people from the flood hit areas. More than 5,000 people were presumed dead.

Jammu & Kashmir Floods, 2014

Caused by torrential rainfall, in September 2014, the Kashmir region suffered disastrous floods across many of its districts. According to the Home Ministry of India, 2,600 villages were reported to be affected in Jammu and Kashmir, out of which 390 villages in Kashmir were completely submerged.

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