DHAKA, 8 August 2007 — The nearly two weeks of flooding in Bangladesh has killed 290 people, displaced millions and destroyed crops and infrastructure worth hundreds of millions of dollars, sources said yesterday.

However, flooding eased in most parts of Bangladesh yesterday with major improvements expected over the coming days, the head of country’s flood center said.

“All the major rivers are receding fast. Except in the eastern part of the capital, we will now see some dramatic improvement from later today (Tuesday),” said Saiful Hossain, the head of the Flood Forecasting and Warning Center.

The flood center monitors the water level of all the major rivers in Bangladesh and India.

However, at least eight more deaths were reported yesterday, mostly children who drowned in swirling waters, taking the death toll from the last two weeks’ floods to 164, government spokesman Golam Kibria said.

The monsoon season death toll now stands at 290, including 126 who died in landslides and heavy rains in June.

Some 38 of the country’s 64 districts in the north, center and east have been at least partly submerged by one of the worst floods in years, caused by snow melt and heavy monsoon downpours in north and east India.

The warning center said floods had already started to recede in most parts of northern Bangladesh due to a drop in the level of the Brahmaputra, known as the Jamuna in Bangladesh. The Jamuna is a major South Asian river responsible for two-thirds of the country’s river water.

Eastern areas also witnessed significant improvements, Hossain said, adding that the level of the Ganges, called the Padma in Bangladesh, also dropped at some points.

More than a week of floods submerged some 40 percent of the country, displacing or marooning 9.1 million people and damaging crops, houses and roads, the government said.

Some 100,000 mud-built or tin-roofed houses were destroyed with the residents now in government shelters.

The country’s seven-month-old army-backed government is facing its toughest test yet, with millions of people displaced and the economy badly damaged by the worst floods to hit the country in a decade.

“No doubt, the government is facing the toughest test in its short life. Some 40 percent of the land is still under water and monsoon is a long way to go,” said Bangladesh flood expert Ainun Nishat.

“Millions of farmers did not have a good crop in the dry season. Now if the flood prolongs or returns with a new wave later this month, a grim future is awaiting them.” The interim government, headed by former central bank Governor Fakhruddin Ahmed, came to power in January after months of violence in which at least 35 people died.

Many of Bangladesh’s former leaders are now behind bars after a concerted campaign to clean up its notoriously corrupt political system.

But with millions of farmers facing bleak prospects, the government has turned to the political parties for help in dealing with the flood crisis. “The immediate task of the government is to provide emergency survival relief. And to do that it needs help from every group. Previously, it proved to be a crucial factor,” said Saidur Rahman, director of the government Disaster Preparedness Center.

Economist Atiar Rahman said the government could benefit from the experience of former political leaders in distributing aid. “So far, the amount of food relief that the government provided is not adequate. And the government is in a vulnerable position,” he said.

“But if it utilizes the experience of previous floods, like the deluge in 1998, I am sure the government can tackle the crisis well.”