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The current spell of floods in Bihar has pushed the toll to 216, with 27 more deaths reported from Katihar, Kishanganj, Gopalganj, Darbhanga and Samastipur districts of Bihar, officials in Patna said on Thursday.
Fifteen people died when a country boat capsized midstream in Mahananda river, in Katihar district, while five people drowned as another boat sank near Paschimi Hirni, under Kusheswar police station, in Darbhanga district on Wednesday.
Five people met a watery grave in Samastipur district, while the floods claimed one life each in Siwan and Gopalganj districts on Wednesday evening, the officials added.
Nearly 13 million people have so far been affected by floods in more than 6,415 villages spread over 21 districts in the state, according to the officials at the relief and rehabilitation department.
Standing crops worth over Rs one billion and property worth Rs four billion is estimated to have been destroyed in the floods.
Officials were quick to point out the marked improvement in the overall flood situation in Bihar on Thursday, with major rivers receding in the absence of rainfall in catchment areas in upper Nepal.
EARLIER REPORT: Rains wash away fears of drought in Bihar
More reports on the floods in Bihar
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