The worst rains and floods in parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh left 172 dead as authorities on Saturday intensified rescue efforts with army troops backed by IAF helicopters shifting marooned villagers from rooftops to safer areas.

While 156 people perished in the heavy rains that battered 15 districts of Karnataka, 16 people were killed in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh whose five districts were hit by the flash flood.

However, the death count in both the states is likely to go up as many flood-hit areas were still to be accessed in Andhra Pradesh and between 11 and 21 persons were feared buried under mounds following landslide in a hillock at Kadawada village in Uttara Kannada where two bodies have been recovered, officials said.

In Karnataka, fifteen districts have been impacted in varying degrees by the monsoon fury, he said, adding, the unprecedented rain in northern Karnataka has damaged 1,03,291 houses.

Rescue operations were on in full swing in Kadawada village in Uttara Kannada district where a major landslide buried eight houses. According to eyewitnesses, around 11-21 people were feared trapped.

Rains had abated to some extent except in coastal parts and Bellary district, he said.

The Indian Air Force evacuated 12 persons caught in neck-deep water in Bellary district while 32 marooned people were rescued from the temple town of Mantralaya in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district bordering Raichur in Karnataka.