5 Who Went Missing In Himachal Pradesh Flash Floods Untraceable

Five people who went missing after heavy rains triggered flash floods and landslides in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi district remained untraceable on Sunday, a senior official said.

Besides, 22 people were killed and 12 injured in rain-related incidents on Saturday. The maximum damage was reported from Mandi, Kangra, and Chamba districts.

State Disaster Management Department director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said the five people who went missing after a flash flood in Baghi nullah on the Mandi-Katola-Prashar road in Mandi are still untraceable, he added.

Several families fled their homes located between Baghi and Old Katola after a cloudburst in the area on Saturday and took shelter at safer places.

Mokhta said the Shimla-Chandigarh highway, which was blocked on Saturday evening following a landslide at Sonu Bangla between Shoghi and Tara Devi, has been cleared for vehicular movement.

However, several roads, especially in Mandi, are still closed for traffic and work is on clear them, he added.

Principal Secretary, Revenue, Onkar Sharma said Rs 232.31 crore has been released from the State Disaster Response Fund to the affected districts.

Sufficient funds are available with all districts to carry out the relief and rehabilitation work, he said.

In Kangra, District Magistrate (DM) Nipun Jindal ordered a magisterial inquiry into the cause of the collapse of a rail bridge over the Chakki river in Nurpur tehsil.

Additional District Magistrate Rohit Rathore will conduct an inquiry into the incident and submit a detailed report to the DM within 15 days, an official order stated.

The bridge collapsed on Saturday after two of its pillars were washed away in a flash flood, cutting off the narrow gauge train service between Pathankot and Joginder Nagar.

Seven trains used to run on this narrow gauge rail line that was constructed and commissioned by the British government in 1928.

(Inputs from PTI)