In Bihar, 514 village panchayats in 84 blocks across 14 districts were reeling under floods on Wednesday (September 9, 2026), with the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, Punpun, Bagmati, and Ghagra rivers flowing above the danger mark at several places, even as water levels began falling at some locations.Over 4,000 government schools have been submerged in the 14 flood-hit districts, with the schooling of over three lakh students likely to be severely affected. The Bihar Education Department recently announced half-yearly exams for Classes 1 to 12 to be held from September 15, 2026. Students rued that not even a third of the syllabus has been completed yet due to the floods, and other reasons, including the lack of teachers and their transfers.The Education Department has also asked students to bring their own mats and polythene sheets for the exams to be held in village panchayat buildings and open spaces in their respective areas.“This came as an utter surprise for us. When even the course syllabus is not completed by the teachers due to the floods, how can the department ask students to bring mats and polythene sheets from home for the exam?” Harishankar Mandal of Naugachhia in Bhagalpur district, whose son is a Class 12 student, said. Subodh Mandal is a student of a government school flooded with waist-deep flood water for the past 10 days, during which classes have been suspended. Students and parents of other submerged schools echoed this view.Students will face difficulties in appearing for the exams, Anand Mishra, a prominent union leader of primary school teachers in Bihar, said. “Schools in over a dozen districts in Bihar are submerged in flood. Waterlogging persists and approach roads are broken, so students will have great difficulties in taking the exams. The Education Department must taken action on these issues,” Mr. Mishra said.Necessary directions have been provided for flood-hit areas so that students’ academic preparations are not hampered, Bihar Education Minister Mithilesh Tiwari said.The half-yearly exam for Classes 1 to 8 will be held from September 15; for Classes 9 and 10 from September 21; and Class 12 from September 18. Supply of answer sheets to schools will begin from September 12.Meanwhile, parents of a government school in Dhanki village on the outskirts of Patna district, which is submerged in the flood waters of the Punpun river, said the district administration should make alternative arrangements for students to reach their schools. Students were recently seen trying to reach their school by boat, with the help of a rope.“Students’ safety is our prime concern and we are in the process of making alternative arrangements for them,” a senior Education Department official said.Legislators of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), named in-charge of the flood-affected districts, have been asked to remain present to monitor the flood situation in their respective districts.Water levels at several places in the Punpun and Naubatpur area of Patna started falling on Wednesday, although low-lying areas are still submerged, Ashok Kumar, Rajendra Kumar, and Ajay Kumar, officials who have been making rounds of the flood-affected areas to monitor relief and rescue operations, said.About 40.21 lakh people have been hit as the “incessant rain in several districts and catchment areas of Nepal caused rivers and their tributaries to overflow”, the State Disaster Management Department said.Rescue and relief operations are being conducted by 27 State Disaster Response Force and 10 National Disaster Response Force teams, a disaster management official said. The government has set up 723 community kitchens and 15 relief camps. Approximately 1.94 lakh polythene sheets, 29,400 dry ration packets, and 5,178 quintals of animal fodder have been distributed so far among the flood-hit people, with 1,979 boats currently in operation for relief and rescue operations.The flood-affected districts are Patna, Bhojpur, Saran, Vaishali, Bhagalpur, Begusarai, Samastipur, Buxar, Katihar, Munger, Lakhisarai, Khagaria, Arwal, and Purnea.