No reprieve for Himachal as flash floods, landslides block 358 roads

With light to moderate rain in the past 24 hours, flash floods and landslides continued in various locations across Himachal Pradesh, and a total of 358 roads, including two national highways, were closed on Friday, officials said.

The Chandigarh-Manali National Highway 21, which was opened after 40 hours on Thursday afternoon, was closed again on Friday following a landslide in Mandi district, while the Auto-Sainj road NH 305 was blocked near Jahed and Banjar in Kullu district.

Reports of damage to private orchards have also poured in from the Narkanda-Shilaroo area of the Shimla district as floods from drains entered the lands.

A landslide occurred on the road in front of the famous Baba Balak Nath Temple, Diyotsiddha, in the Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh on Friday.

The local MeT office issued a yellow warning of heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning in three to six districts on Saturday and Sunday, and an orange alert of heavy rains in isolated areas of the state from Monday to Thursday.

Light to moderate rains lashed a few parts of the state, and Narkanda received 49.5 mm of rain since Thursday night, followed by Kufri 47.5 mm, Nahan 42.1 mm, Bajaura 17 mm, Dharamshala 6.8 mm and Shimla 6 mm.

Of the total closed roads, 206 were blocked in Mandi district while 100 roads were closed in the adjoining Kullu district on Thursday, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).

The road restoration works are going on in full swing, but bad weather conditions are obstructing the work, officials said.

Around 112 people have died in rain-related incidents this monsoon, so far, while 37 are missing. Additionally, 599 transformers and 177 water supply schemes have been affected, the SEOC said.

Since the onset of monsoon on June 20, Himachal Pradesh has incurred losses totalling Rs 1,988 crore. The state has witnessed 58 flash floods, 30 cloudbursts and 51 major landslides so far.