Monsoons claim 700 lives

The death toll from almost two months of monsoon rain and floods across South Asia topped 700 today as racing rivers and heavy downpours and winds hit India’s western desert states and Pakistan’s Sindh province.

At least 36 people have lost their lives in India’s desert regions in Gujarat and Rajasthan states over the past two days, mostly drowned by flooded rivers or killed by live electricity wires snapped by strong winds, officials said.