Himachal Pradesh Rains LIVE: Will Speak to PM Over Rain Destruction, Says CM Sukhu; Mandi-Pathankot Highway Completely Closed

Punjab: Flood-like situation in Bhanam village in Nangal, Rupnagar due to continuous rainfall.

he Unesco world heritage Shimla-Kalka railway line was damaged near Summer Hill here after a landslide swept away a 50-metre bridge, leaving a portion of the the track hanging in the air, officials said on Monday.

The concrete bridge near Summer Hill, 6 km from Shimla, got completely destroyed and the heritage track has suffered damages at five or six places and the most affected stretch is between Shimla and Shoghi, station master Joginder Singh said.

It will take at least two weeks to repair the track depending on the intensity of rains, Singh said.

Uttarakhand | Several houses collapsed in a landslide in Dehradun’s Vikasnagar yesterday.

The minimum temperature in the national capital on Thursday settled at 27.5 degrees Celsius, one notch above normal, whereas the maximum temperature is expected to hover around 37 degrees Celsius. Generally cloudy sky is expected during the day, according to a bulletin by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Light to moderate rains were witnessed in the city on Tuesday and Wednesday. According to the data by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) at 9 am stood at 126.  An AQI between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51 and 100 “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 “moderate”, 201 and 300 “poor”, 301 and 400 “very poor”, and 401 and 500 “severe”. The relative humidity at 8.30 am was 66 per cent, the IMD bulletin said.

Himachal Pradesh | Rescue operation underway in Shimla’s Summer Hill area after a massive landslide took place in the area on 14th August.

“The rescue and search operation is underway since 4 days. Indian Army, SDRF and Police are engaged in rescue operations here. Out of the 21 people missing, 13 bodies have been recovered so far,” NDRF Inspector Naseef Khan said.

Mandi-Pathankot national highway is completely closed. Water and electricity supply also hit in most areas of Mandi. Around 1,219 electricity transformers are down.

Heavy rains triggered massive landslides in Manipur’s Noney district, blocking the Imphal-Silchar highway due to which at least 500 goods vehicles are stranded, officials said on Thursday.

The landslides happened on the National Highway 37 between Irang and Awangkhul part 2, Khongsang and Awangkhul, and Rangkhui village on Wednesday, they said.

Work is underway to clear the road, and re-start movement of traffic, officials said.

The water level of River Yamuna comes below the warning level. At 9 am, the water level was recorded to be at 204.42 meters in Delhi.

Uttarakhand: Due to a landslide in Langha Jakhan village of Vikasnagar tehsil of Dehradun district, 15 houses and 7 cowsheds have been completely destroyed. 50 people from 16 families live in Jakhan village. No loss of life or animal was reported during the incident. A

ll the affected people have been shifted to relief camps set up in a school in Pachta village. The roads have also caved in due to the landslide.

Delhi: Yamuna continues to overflow; latest morning visuals from Old Yamuna Bridge (Loha Pul).

At least 71 people have died in the past three days and 13 are still missing in Himachal Pradesh after devastating rains pounded the state, with Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu terming the work of rebuilding infrastructure a “mountain-like challenge”.

The death toll from landslides and flashfloods jumped on Wednesday as rescuers pulled out more bodies from the rubble of collapsed buildings, officials said.

Heavy rains have battered the hill state since Sunday, triggering landslides in several districts including Shimla where three areas — Summer Hill, Fagli and Krishna Nagar — are badly hit by landslips.

The water level of the Ganga river on Wednesday neared the danger mark at Narora barrage in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr district, owing to incessant rain and inflow of water from Haridwar and the Bijnor Ganga Barrage.

Nearly 3,56,483 cusecs of water was released from the Haridwar barrage and 3,70,440 cusecs from Bijnor barrage which is likely to reach Narora barrage within 72 hours.

On Wednesday morning, the water availability downstream of Narora’s Ganga barrage was measured at 178.63 metres. This is barely .135 metres from the danger mark.

Rescuers have pulled out another four bodies, including those of a couple and their son, from the debris at a resort in Uttarakhand’s Lakshman Jhula that was hit by a landslide following heavy rain on Monday.

Two bodies were retrieved late on Tuesday and two others on Wednesday, the SSP Office in Pauri said.

The death toll stemming from Monday’s rain-related incidents in Uttarakhand has risen to 10 with the recoveries of these four bodies.

Rescuers have safely evacuated 293 pilgrims stranded since Monday on the trek route to Madmaheshwar temple following a bridge collapse in rain-hit Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district.

The shrine, which is part of the Panch Kedar group of temples in Uttarakhand, is located at an altitude of 11,473 feet. The rescue operation concluded with the evacuation of 293 pilgrims, Rudraprayag District Disaster Management Officer Nandan Singh Rajwar said on Wednesday.

State Disaster Response Force personnel were pressed into service and 240 pilgrims airlifted by a helicopter on Wednesday. Another 53 pilgrims were evacuated on Tuesday through the rope-river crossing method, the state disaster control room here said on Wednesday.

Chandigarh-Manali National Highway, which goes from Mandi, is majorly affected due to rain. Restoration work is underway and could take up to one week to clear the area.

Himachal chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu will visit rain-affected areas in Mandi District on Thursday.

Landslides and flash floods triggered by torrential rains in Himachal Pradesh since Sunday have resulted in a tragic loss of 71 lives, according to the state principal secretary (revenue) Onkar Sharma.

Himachal Rains| With heavy rains in Mandi from 13th to 15th August, around 267 houses have been destroyed and more than 250 roads affected.

As many as 19 people have lost their lives and 3 are missing. The search operation is on to find the missing.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Wednesday conducted an aerial survey of flood-affected regions of Fatehpur and Indora assembly segment in Kangra district where 27 panchayats have been affected.

He took stock of evacuation operations of the regions flooded downstream of Pong reservoir and other relief works.

While interacting with the people in relief camps set up at Damtal and Shekhpura, the Chief Minister inquired into their well-being, besides assuring them of all possible assistance from the government.

A nearly 157 per cent surge in rainfall over the past few days has resulted in extensive damage across Himachal Pradesh, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Tuesday.

The death toll due to the rain rose to 56 after one more body was pulled out of the rubble of a collapsed Shiva temple in Shimla while two people died in a fresh landslide in the city, officials said.

Heavy rain has battered Himachal Pradesh since Sunday, triggering landslides and cloudbursts that blocked several roads and led to house collapse incidents.