More misery for India as late monsoon kills at least 18
- Incessant rain and floods have been a bane for India in the past month, including the tech hub Bangalore and business district of Gurugram near New Delhi
- The rainy season usually draws to a close in northwest India from mid-September, and it should be ending across the country by mid-October
Incessant rain lashed parts of northern India on Monday forcing schools to close in several cities as an unusually late rainy season prolonged havoc across the country, and killed 18 people over the past 24 hours.
The state-run Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said heavy rainfall was expected for the northwestern states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan until Tuesday.
The rainy season usually draws to a close in northwest India from mid-September, and it should be ending across the country by mid-October.
Some environmentalists suspect climate change is behind the unusually wet weather.
Parts of northwest India got 1,293 per cent more rainfall than normal on Sunday, with Uttar Pradesh state receiving as much as 22.5mm, the IMD said.
Eighteen people were killed in various accidents attributed to the rain over the past 24 hours in Uttar Pradesh, including drownings and electrocutions, authorities said.