India gives $5 million in flood relief

NEW YORK, Aug. 21 (UPI) -- Flood-ravaged Pakistan has received $5 million in aid from India and donors have pledged additional funds to help victims, officials say.

Pakistan's U.N. Ambassador Abdullah Haroon welcomed the donation from rival India, saying it rises above any differences the two countries had, the BBC said Saturday.

India's offer of help came after a two-day special meeting of the U.N. Security Council in New York and brings the total raised for disaster aid to more than $490 million. Another $325 million has been pledged, the report said.

"We are willing to do all that is in our power to assist Pakistan in facing the consequences of floods," India's U.N. Ambassador Hardeep Singh said. "We extend our wholehearted support to the government of Pakistan in its efforts for relief and rehabilitation of the ... population."

The floods started last month after record-breaking monsoon rains inundated thousands of towns and villages in Punjab and Sindh provinces, the BBC said.

As much as 20 percent of the country is under water and an estimated 20 million people have been affected. Officials put the death toll at about 1,600.