The devastating floods in Nepal have claimed a heavy toll on human life, with hundreds of people reported missing. As floodwaters begin to recede, rescue teams are working tirelessly to recover bodies from the affected areas. Officials said Nepal’s Chitwan district, which shares a border with India, has recorded the highest number of bodies recovered so far, at 132. Disturbingly, bodies swept away by the floods are now being carried into India through the Gandak river, with three bodies already recovered from the river near Maharajganj in Uttar Pradesh. The fact that bodies are being carried nearly 200 kilometres across the Nepal border into India underscores the sheer scale of the disaster.
The floods were triggered when a glacier in Nepal suddenly gave way, causing the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers to swell violently and unleash widespread destruction. The two rivers converge to form the Narayani river, also known as the Kali Gandaki, which flows into India, where it is called the Gandak. The river passes through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar before merging with the Ganga near Hajipur-Sonepur, close to Patna. Many of those swept away in the floods are believed to have been caught in the river’s current, with their bodies now being carried downstream into Indian territory.
A large number of bodies have been found washed ashore along the Gandak river, which flows from Nepal’s southern region bordering Uttar Pradesh. Authorities in UP’s Maharajganj and Kushinagar districts have recovered a total of seven bodies from the rivers so far. District Magistrate Gaurav Singh Sogarwal said four bodies were found floating in the river in Maharajganj district. These were spotted and retrieved with the help of motorboats by India’s Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), the force guarding the India-Nepal border in the district. SSB Inspector Arun Pandey said the recovered bodies included two women and one man, though their identities are yet to be established.
Meanwhile, the floods in Nepal have put Uttar Pradesh and Bihar on high alert. Authorities are relocating residents of low-lying villages along the Gandak river basin to safer locations and are closely monitoring the situation on an ongoing basis. With reports warning of the possibility of further flooding, officials in both states have stepped up precautionary measures, moving people away from areas along the riverbanks.