51 rescued as Beas floods Ballah village

In a swift rescue operation, 51 persons, including 30 migrant labourers and 21 villagers, were saved from Ballah village in Himachal’s Hamirpur district after sudden flooding triggered by the release of 1.64 lakh cusecs of water from the Pandoh Dam around 3 am. The Beas River swelled rapidly, inundating low-lying areas of Ballah under Gram Panchayat Kheri by 5.30 am.

Deputy Commissioner Amarjit Singh said the State Disaster Response Force from Kangra, Reserve Police Battalion from Jungle Beri, and Home Guards led the rescue with help from locals. Thankfully, no relief camp was needed as all evacuees had alternate accommodation.

The district had been lashed by incessant rainfall over the past 24 hours, with cloudbursts in upper regions causing a sharp rise in the Beas water level. Overflowing waters near Sujanpur and Nadaun caused severe damage, including the washing away of a riverside road near Nadaun.

Despite warnings, some people were seen collecting driftwood dangerously close to the river, especially near Bharoli village in Kangra.