Heavy rains have lashed various parts of Himachal Pradesh once again since Tuesday night. Torrential rains are continuing in the capital, Shimla, as well. Seeing the weather, the local people have lost their sleep. People have been feeling unsafe while stepping out of their homes.
According to the Meteorological Department, Shimla has recorded 132 mm of rainfall as of 8.30 a.m. Due to the incessant rains in Shimla, the possibility of landslides has increased. Many houses have been evacuated late at night due to water entering Shimla’s Vijayanagar. A private bus parked on the roadside near Shimla’s ISBT got hit by the debris. Fortunately, there was no loss of life in the incident. Many houses and vehicles have been damaged due to floods in Subathu, Solan district, adjacent to Shimla.
Most of the roads are closed due to rain and landslides in different parts of the state. The Shimla-Chandigarh National Highway-5 is blocked by a landslide at Chakki Mor in Solan district. The Kullu-Mandi National Highway-21 in Mandi district is blocked due to a landslide near Pandoh. Mandi-Pathankot National Highway 154 has also been blocked in Mandi district itself.
According to the report of the State Disaster Management Authority, 530 roads, including three national highways, are closed due to landslides. Along with this, 2897 transformers got damaged due to power failure. A maximum of 213 roads are closed in Mandi district. Traffic has come to a halt on 134 roads in Solan, 58 in Shimla, 50 in Bilaspur, 33 in Hamirpur, and 24 in Kullu district. Apart from this, a large number of transformers are also defective. In Mandi district alone, there is power failure in many villages and towns due to the breakdown of 1142 transformers. In Shimla district, 598 transformers—410 in Solan, 376 in Hamirpur, 158 in Sirmaur, and 124 in Kullu—are down. Landslides have also affected 214 drinking water schemes in the state. 91 drinking water schemes are stalled in Mandi, 73 in Shimla, and 47 in Bilaspur.
Due to incessant rains in different areas of the state, rivers and streams are in spate, due to which the risk of floods has increased in the state. If such rains continue for a few more days, there could be a big problem for Shimla and other areas of Himachal Pradesh.
The Meteorological Department has alerted 10 districts, including Shimla, regarding heavy rains in its forecast. There is a possibility of heavy rains until August 25. The director of the Meteorological Centre, Shimla Surendra Paul, said that heavy rains are expected for the next three days due to the activation of the monsoon. He said that an orange alert for heavy rain has been issued on August 23 and 24, and a yellow alert has been issued on August 25. This alert has been issued for Shimla, Chamba, Kullu, Mandi, Kangra, Bilkul, Una, Hamirpur, Solan, and Sirmaur districts. Flood warnings have also been issued in these districts during the next 24 hours. The Meteorological Department has predicted landslides and the falling of trees in these districts for the next three days and has asked people to be careful while stepping out of their houses. People and tourists have been advised not to go towards landslide-prone areas and the banks of rivers and streams. The weather will remain bad in the state until August 27.
