Siliguri, Sept. 7 -- On one hand, the Ganga is eating away at its banks and, on the other, floodwater is rapidly spreading across the low-lying areas, leaving three gram panchayats of Bhutni under Manikchak block of Malda situated in West Bengal virtually submerged.
With the river continuing to rise, the administration apprehends that nearly two lakh people could be affected within the next 48 hours, as the flood situation threatens to turn critical.
The situation is particularly grim in Bhutni Diara, where around 1.5 lakh people are already marooned. Several roads have gone under water, cutting off communication with a number of villages. The Bhutni police station at Uttar Chandipur has also been inundated, forcing the police administrat...