Himachal received 39% excess rain in monsoon, suffered losses of over Rs 4,881 crore

Himachal Pradesh received 39 per cent excess rains during the monsoon season from June 1 to September 30. The state recorded 1,022.5 mm of rainfall against the normal rainfall of 734.4 mm, the MeT office here said on Wednesday.

Excessive rains wreaked havoc in the hill state, which suffered losses to the tune of more than Rs 4,881 crore. The state witnessed 47 cloudbursts, 98 flash floods and 148 major landslides this monsoon, while 454 persons died in such incidents.

The southwest monsoon entered the Himalayan state on June 20 and withdrew on September 26, a report issued by the meteorological centre here said.

In the last 29 years, the earliest onset of the southwest monsoon was on June 9, 2000 and the most-delayed arrival was on July 5, 2010. The earliest withdrawal was on September 18, 2001 and the most-delayed one was on October 11, 2019.

This year, Himachal Pradesh received the 15th-highest monsoon rainfall of 1,022.5 mm in the last 125 years and the highest in 29 years. The highest rainfall of 1,314.6 mm was recorded in 1922 for the period from 1901 to 2025.

This monsoon, the excess rainfall was 34 per cent in June, 68 per cent in August and 71 per cent in September. However, July recorded a deficit of 2 per cent, the MeT office said.

Very heavy rains were recorded in the state on 36 days (four days in June, eight in July, 15 in August and nine in September).

Of the victims, 264 lost their lives in rain-related incidents and 190 in road accidents. Additionally, 498 people were injured and 50 are still reported missing. About 9,230 houses were fully or partially damaged, according to the last report of the State Emergency Operation Centre released on September 24.