According to the state emergency operation centre, a total of 621 highways, including up to 236 in Mandi, 59 in Shimla, and 40 in the Bilaspur district, are currently closed...
Digital Desk: In Himachal Pradesh, recent heavy rainfall has caused landslides that have blocked multiple highways, including the key Shimla-Chandigarh road, which has been closed for buses and trucks. According to a statement released here on Sunday, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu declared the closure of all institutions and colleges in the state until August 14. This decision was made due to the state's ongoing rainy weather.
In a rain-related incident on Sunday, a private bus conductor was hurt when a tree was uprooted and fell on the bus close to ISBT, according to officials.
According to the state emergency operation centre, a total of 621 highways, including up to 236 in Mandi, 59 in Shimla, and 40 in the Bilaspur district, are currently closed due to vehicular traffic. According to officials, recurring landslides have been affecting a crucial section of the Shimla-Kalka National Highway, which connects Shimla and Chandigarh, during the past two weeks.
Heavy vehicles were stranded on both sides of the road on Sunday at Chakki Mor near Koti in Solan due to persistent sliding that prevented vehicle movement throughout the day. They stated that the small vehicles are being diverted via alternative roads.
On August 2, a significant landslip caused 50 metres of the road to collapse, blocking this particular portion of the road. Even though the route was restored on August 8, the commute is still challenging due to landslides. According to the Solan district government, this road will only be open to light vehicles.
In two villages, Ghomu and Jawali, in the Sarkaghat region of the Mandi district, extensive damage to homes and agricultural land was brought on by a cloudburst; the losses are still being calculated. The affected areas were visited by Mandi SP Soumya Sambsivan, who spoke with PTI.
A spate in the Beas and its tributaries resulted from the destruction that 48 hours of nonstop rain in the Hamirpur district created.
The regions where the nullahs of Maan and Kunah are found are the hardest hit, according to officials. All around Hamirpur, crops, rich land, and public and private structures have sustained extensive damage as a result of the rains and landslides.
People have been urged not to go outside and to stay away from the nullahs and bank of the Beas River by the district government.
Niupan Jindal, the deputy commissioner for Kangra, stated that the Bhakra Beas Management Board has decided to release water from Pong Dam starting at 8 am on Monday due to a rise in the water level of the Beas river flowing through the Pong reservoir as a result of heavy rainfall.
The DC pleaded with residents of panchayats close to Pong's downstream area not to approach the river. Following a landslip at Dudhli in the city's suburbs, three vehicles in Shimla that were parked on the side of the road were destroyed.
A landslide also occurred next to St Edward's School, and in the middle of the state capital, near the 103 Tunnel, uprooted trees temporarily blocked the road. Over the past few days, there has been a fluctuating supply of necessities like milk, newspapers, and food both here and in the upper Shimla districts.
Following a landslide on the Shimla Mataur road, the damage was done to three homes, cow barns, and vehicles close to Dagsech in the Namhol region of Bilaspur district. Nine homes owned by the administration have been abandoned since the local land began to sink, according to officials.
They added, citing Chatru Panchayat in the Balh area, Lot and Dhishit panchayats in the Gohar area, and other locations in the Mandi district as sources of reports of damage to homes and agricultural land.
According to the emergency operation centre, 257 people have died in rain-related incidents and traffic accidents since the beginning of the monsoon in Himachal Pradesh on June 24. The hill state has also suffered losses totaling Rs 7,020 crore.
On Sunday, moderate to very heavy rains pounded parts of the state. Sundernagar recorded the maximum rainfall, at 178 mm, followed by Sujanpur Tira, 150 mm, Gohar, 130 mm, Kahu, 123 mm, Mandi, 142 mm, Dharmshala, 80 mm, Berthin, 80 mm, Baldwara, and 70 mm at Nadaun, Palampur, and Karsog. Shimla recorded 56 mm of rain, compared to 40 mm in Guler, 40 mm in Pachhad, and 30 mm in each of Jogindernagar, Nagrota Surian, Solan, and Kangra.
It is to be noted that rainy weather is expected to last across the state until August 19, according to the local MeT station, which has issued a yellow warning for heavy rain, thunderstorms, and lightning in isolated locations from August 14 to 17.
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