BHUBANESWAR (India) - THOUSANDS were evacuated and at least 16 people swept away in eastern Orissa state after four rivers burst their banks and inundated scores of villages, officials said on Saturday.

'Our present focus is on evacuation of people. Thousands have been shifted from the villages to shelters,' Disaster Management Minister Manmohan Samel said in state capital Bhubaneswar.

The victims were swept away to their deaths by swirling waters, state officials said, and the army was on high alert to help out.

Almost half of coastal Orissa has been facing flooding since last weekend but a heavy downpour and water overflowing from brimming dams compounded the situation overnight in the three worst-hit districts, officials said.

Northern India, meanwhile, reeled under torrential rains which killed at least 16 people and toppled trees and houses.

All the deaths occurred in Uttar Pradesh state in the past 48 hours, regional relief commissioner G. K. Tandon said in state capital Lucknow.

'We're still assessing the extent of the damage,' he said as rains and high-velocity winds buffeted the city.

Officials said many of the deaths were caused by the collapse of flimsy homes. -- AFP