Lucknow/Bhubaneswar, September 1 (IANS) As floods continue to ravage many parts of India, troops were Thursday called out for relief work in parts of Uttar Pradesh where 42 people died even as the Mahanadi inundated large areas in Orissa affecting more than 300,000 people.

In Uttar Pradesh, rivers were flowing well above the danger mark, enveloping over 100,000 people in at least seven districts.

"The Rapti, Ghaghra and Saryu rivers, which originate in Nepal, have swollen on account of release of water from dams in Nepal and there is little we can do about it," said a home department official.

In the worst affected Balrampur district, along the India-Nepal border, around 45 villages have been marooned, affecting at least 48,000 people.

Other districts hit are Bahraich, Lakhimpur-Kheri, Shravasti, Lakhimpur Kheri (all adjoining the Nepal border), Gonda and Barabanki.

"Army help was sought in Barabanki and Bahraich districts to evacuate people from 15 completely marooned villages," Uttar Pradesh relief commissioner Renuka Kumar told IANS.

Soldiers were also assisting the civil authorities in repairing breaches along the embankments of some rivers.

In other places, the Provincial Armed Constabulary was pressed into service.

"The Ghagra, which has been in spate for several days, has breached the embankments at some places and overflowed into villages, causing loss of human lives, cattle and property," said Kumar.

"Relief measures are in full swing and sufficient funds are being forwarded to the affected districts to ensure timely relief to people."

The Nepal authorities are continuing to release water on account of heavy rains in the upper reaches. The rising rivers downstream in Uttar Pradesh threaten to engulf more villages.

Orissa, hit by torrential rains earlier, was now facing the flood fury.

The heavy rains since Sunday in the upper catchments of the Mahanadi caused breaches Thursday at two places along the banks at Bhagipur in Cuttack district, some 60 km from state capital Bhubaneswar, inundating large swathes of farmland and villages.

The water level at Dalai Ghai along the banks of the Devi river, a tributary of the Mahanadi, in Jagatsinghpur district has crossed the danger mark.

The situation was likely to aggravate in the coming days with the Mahanadi, the state's biggest river, and its tributaries continuing to swell, Orissa special relief commissioner Jagadananda Panda told IANS.

"We have evacuated more than 10,000 people from various districts," he said.

The fresh floods come even as the state is yet to recover from earlier flooding which claimed over 85 lives and caused massive devastation.

"As per our estimate, the number of people likely to be affected by the latest floods may be near three million in next two days," Panda said.

On Wednesday night, the government alerted the administrations of Jagatsinghpur, Angul, Boudh, Cuttack, Khurda, Nayagada, Jajpur, Kendrapara and Puri districts.

Stocks of food, medicines and other relief material have been kept ready at all village blocks and district headquarters, officials said.

At least 100 Indian soldiers are camping at Ranchi in neighbouring Jharkhand on standby to move in for flood relief in any emergency.