Heavy rains in Nepal and Bihar has worsened the flood situations in many parts of the state, prompting the Bihar Chief minister Nitish Kumar to seek the help of Indian Air Force to carry out relief and rescue operations in the state. Thirteen people have died in the state due to floods so far. The chief minister talked to Prime minister Narendra Modi on Sunday and apprised him about the situation. He also sought all possible help from the Centre, following which, the prime minister said that all possible help will be given to the state government. In a series of tweets, Modi also said that his thoughts were with the affected people in Bihar and that Prime Minister’s Office was closely monitoring the situation. [caption id=“attachment_3928909” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Bihar floods have affected over 2 million people. ETV Bihar[/caption] North and North East Bihar are the worst affected as heavy rains in Nepal caused sudden rise in water levels in all the rivers flowing from Himalayas. Koshi, Burhi Gandak, Kamla Balan, Baghmati, Mahananda, Ganga and tributaries of these rivers are flowing much above the danger mark. Purnia, Katihar, Araria, Supaul, Champaran and Madhubani are worst affected districts. The meteorological department has predicted heavy rains in the next 72 hours and the entire state has been put on red alert. Air Force comes to the rescue On 14 August 2017, at 0720 hours, a request for the rescue of marooned personnel in villages around the Indo-Nepal border in the Maharajganj area was received from the local state administration. The Gandak river had overflown submerging all the villages in that area. There was a report of more than 25-40 people stranded at different locations, north of Maharajganj near the village of Baithaulia. The Indian Air Force promptly responded to this call for humanitarian assistance and relief and launched the Mi-17 helicopter from Gorakhpur. During the relief operation, helicopter winched up 15 people from the flooded area and 28 villagers were airlifted at low hover from 11 different locations. Forty-three passengers including one NDRF personnel involved in rescue attempts were evacuated to a safe place as well. Additionally, two An-32 aircraft are being used to convey 90 troops and four boats from Allahabad to Darbhanga. These would be used by the Indian Army in the flooded region of Bihar. Pratya Amrit , Principal secretary of disaster management department, told News18 on Monday that incessant rains are making it difficult to reach out to the affected areas. “We are sending rescue teams by air. Sixteen teams of NDRF, 13 teams of SDRF and 300 army men have been dispatched so far,” he said. Two helicopters in affected areas are air dropping food items to stranded population in the affected districts. Rail and Road connectivity from Bihar to Northeastern states stands disrupted as National Highway 31 is submerged under water and Katihar – New Jalpaigudi railway line is also closed. In Eastern Bihar raging waters swept away Railway tracks in Narkatiyaganj forcing authorities to stop rail traffic on Betiah – Gorakhpur line. All trains on this route have been diverted to Muzaffarpur-Sonepur-Gorakhpur Rail line. List of affected trains Train Number Train Name Journey Commencing On Status 13248 Capital Exp 13.08.17 Cancelled. 15635/15645 Mumbai-Guwahati Exp. 14.08.17 To terminate at PNBE today 12423 Dibrugarh Rajdhani 13.08.17 Cancelled 14055 Brahmputra Exp. jco 13.08.17 Cancelled 15483 Mahananda Exp. 13.08.17 Cancelled 15636 Dwarka Exp. 14.08.17 Cancelled 14056 Brahmputra Exp 12.08.17 To terminate at Mughalsarai 13246 Capital Exp. 12.08.17 To terminate at Katihar 12505 North East Exp. 13.08.17 Cancelled 15645 Mumbai-Guwahati Exp. 16.08.17 Cancelled 12424 Guwahati Rajdhani 13.08.17 Cancelled 12502 Purvottar Sampark Kranti Exp 13.08.17 Cancelled