Dhaka - Nearly 100,000 people made homeless by floods in northern Bangladesh began returning to their villages Tuesday as rivers receded to below danger levels, officials said.

Water levels dropped in all three major rivers in the country as monsoon rains tapered off in the northern and central regions, the state Water Development Board said.

The board in its latest bulletin said the water level in the Ganges had dropped dramatically over the weekend and was flowing at half a metre below the danger mark at most monitoring stations.

The levels also fell in the Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers, said senior engineer Abdul Mannan.

All the three rivers originate from the Himalayan foothills and flow into Bangladesh after cutting through India.

At least 25,000 people rendered homeless in the worst-hit Kurigram district bordering India started packing for home from makeshift flood shelters set up in abandoned schools that were the only concrete structures in many villages.

Disaster management officials have not tallied the total losses suffered in the most recent disaster but there was widespread damage to the production of rice, the country's staple grain.

The interim government set up relief camps through out the flooded region where soldiers and civilian volunteers provided emergency assistance.

Authorities confirmed three deaths due to drowning. But media reports and aid workers put the death toll at 12. (dpa)