At least 178 people died and 19 million were displaced after heavy monsoon rains flooded Bangladesh and much of northern India, officials reported Friday.

The Indian states of Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, along with neighbouring Bangladesh, were among the hardest stricken areas, where dozens of swollen rivers inundated surrounding regions.

"At least 12 people, mostly children and women, have lost their lives overnight, a police spokesman.

Soldiers have already begun to evacuate people from 500 villages under water in Uttar Pradesh.

Medical teams try to visit different regions all across the country by boat to check if there are outbreaks of waterborne diseases.

The disasters took the lives of about 750 Indians since the beginning of the year, local media reported.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!