Heavy Rainfall Alert In Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand Today As Monsoon Fury Continues

Unprecedented rainfall over the past few days has wreaked havoc in many parts of North India. Hundreds of tourists remain stranded in Kullu and Manali even as the Himachal Pradesh government on Wednesday claimed to have shifted to safety about 25,000 tourists from these areas. The death toll due to bad weather is nearing 90 in Himachal Pradesh, with 39 deaths reported over four days. The IMD issued a red alert for several districts of Himachal Pradesh and an orange alert for three districts for the next 48 hours as the state continued to receive heavy rainfall. 

"Panchayat and Nagar Panchayat have been affected due to the rain. I have come here to monitor the situation. What I can see is that the loss is huge for which the recovery is very difficult. Big houses have been destroyed and people have been rendered homeless...The two rivers Beas and Parvati converge here and as a result, the natural river course has been affected, leading to a big diversion. This is the cause of the majority of the damage," LoP and former CM Jairam Thakur said after visiting flood-affected areas in the Bhuntar town of the Kullu district.

Himachal Pradesh Rains

Eight towns -- Manali, Solan, Rohru, Una, Ghamroor, Pachhad, Hamirpur and Keylong -- broke all previous records of single-day July rainfall, the Met office said. In four days, the Kinnaur and the Lahaul and Spiti districts received rainfall equivalent to 43 per cent and 33 per cent of the entire monsoon season. 

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu conducted an aerial survey of Sissu, Chandertal and Losar and Manali on Tuesday. He had earlier said that all the stranded tourists would be evacuated within a day, but termed the evacuation from Chandertal in Lahaul and Spiti a "challenging task". 

The state reported eight deaths on Wednesday, taking the toll due to the heavy rain in the past four days to 39. According to the state emergency operation centre, five people were killed in flash floods in Kullu while two people died in landslides in Sirmaur and Solan. One person was killed in an accidental drowning in Shimla district. The bodies were recovered on Wednesday. 

Around 300 buses are stuck at various locations in the state after routes were affected due to rain and floods. "We have about 3,700 total routes. If we talk about today, the operation of around 1,200 routes is suspended. The majority of them are in the Kullu district...rest are from Mandi, upper Shimla and tribal areas," said Rohan Chand Thakur, Managing Director, Himachal Pradesh Road and Transport Corporation.

The Met office has issued a 'yellow' alert for heavy rain, thunderstorm and lightning on July 15 and 16 and predicted a wet spell till July 18. 

Uttarakhand Rains

The state witnessed landslides following incessant rains which disrupted normal life as well as the Chardham Yatra. Many routes in the state, including national highways such as Badrinath National Highway in Chamoli district, have been closed following landslides. The Yamunotri National Highway is blocked due to landslides at Dharasu and Kalyani, while the Gangotri Highway is also closed between Pakodanala and Dharali due to debris.

"There is not much activity on the 14th, only light to moderate rainfall. Only a few areas in Kumaon region can receive heavy rainfall...On 15-16, the activity will gain strength again. So, on 15, 16 and 17 there can be heavy to very rainfall at some locations in most of the districts. From the 15th, we will issue an Orange alert...," said Vikram Singh, Meteorological Director Uttarakhand. The administration of several districts including Chamoli has declared a holiday for schools on Thursday in view of the meteorological department's forecast of incessant rains.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has asked the people of the state as well as the pilgrims to avoid unnecessary travel.