South Asia’s deadly monsoon season

As climate change makes the monsoon season more extreme, heavy rains are leaving a trail of destruction and death across parts of South Asia, with several areas experiencing their worst flooding in decades. 

In Bangladesh, at least 71 people have been killed by floods in the past two weeks that have affected more than 5.8 million people across the country. UNICEF says two million children have been put at risk by the worst flooding the country has seen in 30 years.

Primary healthcare services, including for newborns and pregnant women, have been greatly affected. The UN also reported severe damage to roads, croplands, and fisheries, negatively affecting livelihoods across the country.

International organisations are scrambling to work with the caretaker government that was put in place after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country early last month.

In neighbouring India, at least 60 people have died across three states – Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana – in the past month. Gujarat alone saw at least 45 fatalities.

Pakistan, however, has had the most fatalities with 306 deaths, including 155 children. In the most affected provinces – Balochistan, Punjab, and Sindh – more than 20,000 houses have been damaged. As with the other countries, the rains and flooding have also severely damaged infrastructure, including bridges and roads in Pakistan’s three most populous provinces.