Snow, rain claim 4 lives in Himachal, three in Punjab

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 2

Heavy rain and snowfall in the hilly areas of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh and incessant rain in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh during the last 48 hours have claimed seven lives, besides disrupting the normal life and causing heavy damage to rabi crops at various places.

The Kashmir valley was cut off from the country as heavy snow blocked the Srinagar-Jammu national highway and forced closure of the civilian airport at Srinagar.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has ordered a special girdawari to assess the damage to crops due to the inclement weather.

Reports reaching here said that four persons died in snow and rain-related incidents in Himachal. A couple, identified as Shyam Dass (36), an up-pradhan of Rei gram panchayat and his wife Shanti Devi (32), were killed when an avalanche hit them near Purthi in the tribal Pangi sub division of Chamba district. They were on their way to Malasani temple to perform a religious ceremony.

A young woman and her seven-day-old baby died when a boulder fell on their house in Kadri village in Nirman area of Kullu district, officials said.

In Punjab, three members of a family, including two children, were killed in Bharat Nagar at Patiala after the roof of their house collapsed on Sunday night following heavy rainfall. The deceased have been identified as Rakesh Kumar (46), his daughter Seema(11) and his son Sukhwinder (10).

Rakesh's wife Urmila Devi (44), his daughter Baby (8) and son Adesh (4), received multiple injuries. They are undergoing treatment at Government Rajindra Hospital. Their condition is stable.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the 296-km-long Srinagar-Jammu Highway and the only civilian airport at Srinagar were closed today due to heavy snowfall across the Kashmir valley, cutting off the region from the rest of the country. The highway is likely to remain closed tomorrow also. 

Schoolchildren faced difficulty in reaching their examination centres due to the downpour. The CBSE examination for class 10 began today.

Report from various parts of Punjab and Haryana have indicated heavy damage to rabi crops, especially wheat and mustard, due to the rainfall. Strong winds accompanied by rain flattened the wheat crop and damaged mustard crop. 

Following heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh, Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti, Pangi, Bharmaur, Chamba and Sirmaur and some other areas were cut off from the rest of the state due to blockade of roads. 

Schools in Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts have been closed till March 9 while schools in Shimla district would remain closed till March 5. The Hindustan-Tibet National highway was closed from Kufri to Narkanda. Kinnaur-bound vehicles terminating at Tapri are being routed via Basantpur and Kingal.

Vehicular traffic to upper Shimla region was disrupted due to heavy snow and bus service to Narkanda, Jubbal, Kotkhai, Chopal and Rohroo, has been suspended. Kalpa in Kinnaur tribal district received 110 cm of snow till this evening while Chitkul and Sangla peaks received 100 cm to 120 cm of snow, respectively. 

Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district also received 100 cm of snow while Rohtang Pass, Mari, Koksar and other high altitude areas received heavy snow.

Churdhar ranges in Sirmaur received over 110 cm of snow while Narkanda and Kharapatthar recorded 60 cm and 45 cm of snow, respectively. Key tourist resorts of Kufri, Shimla and Manali received 30 cm, 11 cm and 8 cm of snow, respectively