NEW DELHI With water level of the rampaging Kosi river receding after wreaking havoc in five northeast districts of Bihar, the overall flood situation in the state improved even as rescue and evacuation operations were stopped. Bihar officials said as the flood waters had started to recede, many people sheltered in government relief centres and adjoining dis tricts started returning to their villages despite persuasion by the local authorities to stay for some more time. Altogether 9,14,278 people were evacuated and shifted to safer places during the operations launched by the Army, Navy, Indian Air Force and National Disaster Response Force, besides the state police. The Kosi had inundated 977 villages and damaged over 3.10 lakh houses. The floods affected over 5.41 lakh families in 977 villages of five districts