Heavy rains wreaked havoc across Himachal Pradesh, turning roads into rivers and rivers into angry seas, swallowing vehicles and houses. It was a scene of devastation and death.

Several landslides hit Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district, cutting off a major road connecting Mandi and Una. More than 200 people are trapped in the area.
Floods

Himachal Pradesh has been witnessing flash floods in several parts of the state since last week. Incessant rains have turned the rivers to angry seas, swallowing everything on their way – from cars to houses. The floods have swept away a number of bridges and roads in the state.

The state is on red alert with heavy rains forecast for the next few days. Heavy to very heavy rainfall has been witnessed in Shimla, Solan, Sirmaur, Chamba, Kangra, Mandi, Bilaspur, Kinnaur and Una districts of Himachal Pradesh. The highest rainfall in a single day was recorded at Kataula in Mandi district on June 24 with 163.3 mm of rain.

Several people have been stranded due to heavy floods. Floods in Kangra and Mandi have caused massive damage to the infrastructure including schools, hospitals and shops. The state government has urged the residents to stay indoors.

Helicopters have been used to rescue people stranded in remote areas. In one video footage from Sirmaur, boulders are seen falling down on a road and a bridge inundated. Meanwhile, a helicopter rescues two German tourists who got stranded while trekking from Ringdum to Dibling.

Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has appealed to the people of the state to stay inside their homes and not go outside as more rains are expected. He also said that the government is doing all possible to ensure the safety of people.

The CM has praised the brave soldiers who are working tirelessly for the rescue of people and ensuring that the floods are contained. He also lauded the NDRF and SDRF teams for their work. Earlier, the CM visited the famous Panchvaktatra temple in Mandi which was submerged in the gushing water of Beas river.

The CM, along with Union Minister and former Himachal Chief Minister Jairam Thakur and other political leaders also visited the flooded area of Kullu to assess the damage caused by the floods. The Deputy Commissioner of Kullu district Ashutosh Garg informed that relief and rescue work is being done on a war footing. He further added that a number of damaged transformers have been restored and the road connectivity between Manali and Kullu has been restored.
Landslides

The flood rains have wreaked havoc in Himachal Pradesh, leaving the state in the grip of destruction and loss. Several people have lost their lives and over 70 thousand people have been evacuated from the flood prone areas of Himachal. The scene of devastation in the state is unimaginable. There has been a massive loss to the infrastructure including roads, buildings and shops. In the Kullu district alone, dozens of hotels and houses have been destroyed due to flood rains. The Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu interacted with people at a relief camp in Kullu on Tuesday and saw the plight of the victims. He said that nature has wreaked havoc in Himachal, and it is time for the government to work hard.

Landslides have also claimed a number of lives in Himachal this monsoon season. The hill state has witnessed 35 major landslides since the onset of monsoon on June 13 till July 30. This is more than double the amount of landslides reported during the same period last year. Similarly, the frequency of cloudbursts has increased by 121%.

Several landslides have occurred in the state, especially in Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur districts. One of the biggest landslides took place in Nigulsari in Kinnaur, which crushed vehicles and buried people under boulders. It has been a tragic reminder that the geologically fragile Himalayan hills are highly vulnerable to extreme weather events. northern voices online of such large scale disasters is an indicator that there is a need for ecologically protective development in Himalayan regions.

There are 17,120 landslide prone sites in Himachal, of which 675 lie near critical infrastructure and habitations. The major landslide prone areas are in Chamba, Mandi, Kangra, Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur, Sirmaur, Bilaspur, Shimla and Kullu districts. The landslides are caused by high intensity rainfall coupled with cutting of hill slopes or by the collapse of rocks at the base of hills. Landslides may also be triggered by damming of rivers or by hydroelectric power projects. Unscientific construction on hills and haphazard land use have overburdened the fragile slopes. The state governments need to strictly enforce building laws in the sensitive Himalayan regions and ban indiscriminate construction of multi-storied buildings on steep slopes.
Heavy Rains

As the monsoon wreaked havoc across northern India, Himachal Pradesh suffered widespread destruction from landslides and flash floods that killed at least 17 people. Pictures of vehicles swept away by swollen rivers and homes turned into islands on the banks of a flooded Beas River were shared online by people in Himachal and other affected areas.

Himachal has witnessed over 41 landslides and 29 flash floods since the onset of monsoon in June this year. The state is prone to frequent natural disasters due to its geographic location, which makes it easy for heavy rains and avalanches to take place in the hilly region.

The ongoing fury of nature has caused widespread damage and left several roads, including national highways, blocked by debris and rocks. It has also led to a disruption in power supply. According to the government, about 70,000 households are without electricity. The government has also evacuated tourists from various popular tourist destinations in Himachal Pradesh, including Manikaran and Barshaini, which are situated close to the stranded Chandra Taal lake. Education Minister Rohit Thakur assured that the safety of foreign nationals and other tourists has been ensured. The stranded tourists from Chandra Taal lake have been transferred to Losar village in Lahaul and Spiti district.

According to the government, heavy rains have displaced more than 10,000 people. The government has provided them with shelter in schools and other places. The state is also trying to relocate a number of tourists from the hilly areas. However, the evacuation is taking longer than expected as the landslides and floods have impeded the operations.

The Himachal government has promised financial assistance to the families of those whose houses were swept away by the floods. It is also working to divert the Thunag nallah to prevent such incidents in the future. Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu also said that the state has not seen such widespread heavy rains in the past 50 years. He added that the state has incurred losses of Rs 3,000 crore in this year’s monsoon season. In a bid to ease the situation, the state government has arranged for water supply through tankers.
Red Alert

The swollen rivers in north India have wreaked havoc, leaving behind scary images of cars floating like paper boats on flooded roads and homes submerged in knee-deep water. While a few hundred people have been rescued by the state and central forces, hundreds of others are still stranded in the affected areas. The floods have caused severe disruption in daily life, especially in the urban centres of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Almost all the major river crossings have been flooded, and several roads are under water, leading to huge traffic jams in many parts of the state. Many trains have been halted as well.

With the flood situation in Himachal Pradesh worsening, NDRF teams are working tirelessly to rescue stranded people. However, it is a challenge to reach out to all the affected areas due to difficult terrain and low-visibility in the mountainous area.

According to IMD HP Deputy Director Bui Lal, a red alert has been issued for Chamba, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Una, Hamirpur, and Bilaspur districts as intense spells of extremely heavy rainfall are likely at isolated places on July 8 and 9 under the influence of an active western disturbance. The agency has also shared its observation with the state government and warned people against flooding, landslides, uprooting of trees, and disruptions in water and electricity supply.

The landslides in Kinnaur have led to the closure of NH-5, which has resulted in massive traffic congestion on this busy road. The landslides also led to the suspension of train services between Shimla and Kalka.

Hundreds of vehicles were stuck in the jam as the landslides trapped vehicles on the Reckong Peo-Shimla highway near Nugulsari in Kinnaur district. Around 300 ITBP personnel along with NDRF and the Army were deployed to carry out rescue operations.

Several tourists, including foreign nationals, were stuck in their hotels as the landslides blocked the roadways in various areas. Some of them were airlifted to safety by helicopters. The state revenue minister said that the landslides in high-altitude areas of Himachal are causing serious damage to the infrastructure and property. Thousands of hectares of land have been damaged and the government has ordered compensation for those whose properties were lost. The landslides have also led to the closure of several tourist destinations in the state.