Floods and landslides of Assam killed 10 after heavy rain 4.27/5 (15)

Heavy floods and landslides triggered by pre-monsoon rains in Assam have killed at least 10 people and affected more than 700,000, authorities said on Thursday.

One of the world's largest rivers, the Brahmaputra, which flows into India and neighboring Bangladesh from Tibet, burst its banks in Assam over the past three days, inundating more than 1,900 villages.

Torrential rains lashed most of the rugged state, and the downpour continued on Wednesday, with more forecast over the next two days.

"The flood situation is turning critical by the hour," Assam's water resources minister, Pijush Hazarika, told Reuters, adding that seven people had drowned in separate incidents during the past three days.

Soldiers of the Indian army retrieved more than 2,000 people trapped in the district of Hojai in a rescue effort that continues, according to the state's health minister, Keshab Mahanta.

Water levels in the Brahmaputra were expected to rise further, national authorities said.

"The situation remains extremely grave in the worst-hit Dima Hasao district, with both rail and road links snapped due to flooding and landslides," said Assam's revenue minister, Jogen Mohan, who is overseeing relief efforts there.