New Delhi, Sept. 6 -- Incessant rainfall and swelling rivers have caused devastation in Punjab, leaving several villages submerged and thousands of people struggling for essential supplies.

The death toll in the state has risen to 46, officials said on Saturday.

Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema termed the floods the worst in five decades, accusing the centre of failing to extend adequate support.

Addressing a press conference at Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh, the Punjab Finance Minister said that nearly 2,000 villages and over four lakh people have been affected.

"Agriculture, the backbone of the state's economy, has suffered extensive damage with 1.72 lakh hectares of farmland impacted across 18 districts. Homes, livestock a...