At least 23 people have died and 50 more remain missing after torrential downpours in northern India swept away roads, buildings and vehicles.

One building collapse today killed at least three people who were washed away when an entire apartment block toppled into a river, a government spokesman said.

Most of the destruction is concentrated in the state of Uttarakhand, where the Ganges river and its tributaries are flowing at dangerously high levels.

Another landslide triggered by the monsoon rains buried a bus, killing three people in Almora district.

Adding to the crisis, many more people have been left totally stranded in their homes by collapsing roads and bridges.
More than 10,000 pilgrims on a mountain pass leading to a Hindu religious site had to be evacuated by helicopter after roads to the pilgrimage spot were unusable.

In response, army and paramilitary troops are leading efforts to rescue scores of people from the rooftops of their flooded homes.

India’s capital, Delhi, has also been hit by the heavy rains as many roads were flooded after recent blistering summer heat.

Delhi airport was affected after more than four inches of rain fell in five hours on Sunday afternoon. Passengers were seen having to wade knee-deep in water to get to Terminal 3.