Cyclone Aila kills nearly 200 in Bangladesh, India

By Anis Ahmed

DHAKA (Reuters) - Nearly 200 people have been killed by a cyclone that ripped through Bangladesh and eastern India, while millions remained marooned by floodwater or forced to live in shelters.

The death toll in Bangladesh rose to more than 130 following recovery of dozens of bodies Tuesday, newspapers and private television channels said, while Indian officials said at least 64 people had died in West Bengal state.

Cyclone Aila slammed into parts of coastal Bangladesh and eastern India Monday, triggering tidal surges and flooding that forced people from their homes.

Officials in both countries said they feared the death tolls would rise although relief and rescue efforts were being intensified.

"Millions of people have been affected by the cyclone, with half a million in shelters and another half a million forced from their homes or were marooned," a disaster control official, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters in Dhaka.

Officials in Bangladesh moved about 500,000 people to temporary shelters after they left their homes to escape huge tidal waves churned by winds up to 100 kph (60 mph).

Heavy rain triggered by the storm also raised river levels and burst mud embankments in the Sundarbans delta in the neighboring eastern Indian state of West Bengal.

"So far, we have got reports of 64 deaths in the state, including nine deaths in landslides in the Darjeeling hills on Tuesday," West Bengal's chief secretary Ashok Mohan Chakraborty told reporters in Kolkata.

In Bangladesh, the worst affected area was the Satkhira district, near the port of Mongla, where a local official said 31 bodies were found in one village.

"The situation here is alarming," Mohammad Abdus Samad, deputy commissioner of Satkhira, told Reuters by telephone.

CROPS DAMAGED

Large areas of crops were destroyed in both countries by the cyclone, officials said, adding they were assessing the damage.

Many farmers have lost their rice just ready to be harvested. "Allah has taken it all from me. I have been made a pauper," said Mohar Ali, a farmer.

Aila swept many areas still recovering from Cyclone Sidr in November 2007, which killed 3,500 people in Bangladesh and made at least a million homeless.

Bangladesh officials said at least 100 people were missing after Monday's cyclone.