Heavy rain, landslides cut off over 600 roads in Himachal; schools closed in four districts

Shimla: Heavy rain led to the closure of 617 roads, including four national highways, and educational institutions in parts of Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday, officials said.

The Kinnaur Kailash Yatra was suspended as the rain on Tuesday night left behind a trail of destruction along the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra route, they said.

Moderate to heavy rain continued to lash parts of the state.

Kasauli has received 145 mm of rain since Tuesday night, Dharampur 122.8 mm, Gohar 120 mm, Malraon 103.2 mm, Baggi 95.9 mm, Nagrota Suriyan 93.4 mm, Naina Devi 86.4 mm, Sundernagar 80.3 mm, Kangra 71.4 mm, Bilaspur 70.4 mm, Dhaulakuan 67 mm, Mandi 65.8 mm, Shimla 64.4 mm and Dharamshala 64 mm, according to the meteorological centre.

The State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said 617 roads, including four national highways, were cut off on Wednesday. Of these, 377 are in Mandi district, which was recently battered by cloudbursts, landslides and flash floods; and 90 are in Kullu district.

Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (NH 21), Old Hindustan-Tibet Road (NH 05), Mandi-Dharampur (NH 3) and Aut-Sainj road (NH 305) were closed for vehicular traffic following landslides. Shimla-Kalka National Highway, which was blocked at Chakki Mor near Koti in Solan district, has been opened for vehicular movement, the officials said.

Commuters faced a hard time as road closures led to traffic jams at several places.

Educational institutions, including schools, colleges and anganwadis, were closed in Sunni, Kumarsein, Chopal, Dodra Kwar, Jubbal, Theog and Rampur subdivisions of Shimla district, Karsog and Sundernagar in Mandi district, Nirmand in Kullu district, and some subdivisions in Solan district.

Several schools in Shimla city announced holidays or switched to online classes.

The Kinnaur district administration suspended the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra after heavy rain led to significant damage along the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra route. Bridges at Tanglippi and Kangarang have been washed away due to the increased water flow in the streams, according to the officials.

Most of the trekking paths have become either dangerously slippery or have been hit by landslides, posing a serious threat to the safety of pilgrims. In view of these adverse conditions, the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra is being temporarily suspended until further notice, the official order said.

Pilgrims currently on the route have been safely sheltered at Milling Khata and Gufa, and all necessary arrangements have been made for their safety.

Kinnaur Kailash, considered to be the winter residence of Lord Shiva, is located at an altitude of 19,850 feet.

The yatra began on July 15 and was to continue till August 30.

Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited (SJPNL) officials cautioned people about disruption in water supply for the next two-three days due to high turbidity at the source.

Since the onset of monsoon on June 20, Himachal Pradesh has incurred losses totalling Rs 1,852 crore. Around 108 people have died in rain-related incidents while 36 are missing. Additionally, 1,491 power distribution transformers and 265 water supply schemes have been affected, the SEOC said.

It said 1,738 houses have been fully or partially damaged in the state, which has witnessed 55 flash floods, 28 cloudbursts and 48 major landslides so far.