Villagers wade through floodwaters on National Highway 106 at Veerpur, in northern Indian state of Bihar, 29 Aug 2008

Authorities in eastern India are rushing medical help to thousands of people displaced by flood waters, in order to keep disease from spreading.

India's health secretary Naresh Dayal  on Friday said 300 tons of medicine, millions of chlorine tablets, vaccines and teams of doctors were being sent to relief camps in the state of Bihar.

Officials say hundreds of cases of diarrhea and other water-borne diseases are already being reported in government-run shelters, due to water contamination.

Flood waters have receded in some areas, prompting some villagers to return to their homes today, despite government warnings that the swollen Kosi River could overrun its banks again.

Authorities say many of the areas will likely remain flooded until the monsoon rains taper off in November.

The flooding began two weeks ago when the Kosi River burst its banks in neighboring Nepal, causing river water to spill into India.

Tens of thousands of people have also been displaced in northeastern India's Assam state, Nepal and Bangladesh. Officials say the floods have killed at least 80 people -- a figure they expect to rise.

South Asia's monsoon season runs from June to September.