“A total of 38 landslide incidents, 6 cloudburst incidents have been reported in the last 5 days. A total of 622 houses/cow sheds have been damaged so far due to heavy rains, landslides and cloudbursts,” a Home Ministry report said. 16 animals have also lost their lives.
7 national highways affected in Himachal
In Himachal Pradesh, 7 national highways and 591 rural link roads are either blocked or broken due to heavy rains, cloud bursts and landslides.
Both the Army and the Air Force are engaged in rescue operations
“Both the Army and the Air Force are involved in the rescue operation. Two infantry companies have been deployed in Kangra. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has flown 78 sorties. The stranded people have been rescued,” the official said.
Red alert issued for Uttarakhand
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for the neighboring state of Uttarakhand. Due to incessant rains, flood-like conditions have occurred in Dehradun, Garhwal, Champawat, Udham Singh Nagar, Tihri Garhwal, Pithoragarh and Bageshwar.
Two national highway blocks in Uttarakhand
According to Home Ministry data, two national highways, 13 state highways and 513 rural roads have been reported blocked due to landslides and rains in Uttarakhand. At the same time, one foot bridge and one motor bridge were washed away in Chamoli district. “Nine teams of NDRF along with rescue boats have been deployed to assist the state authorities,” an official said.
Home Ministry data shows that all 335 districts have been affected by incessant rains across the country since April 1. About 892 people died due to floods, 506 due to lightning, 186 due to landslides and 400 due to other natural disasters. Due to which the death toll in such incidents across India has crossed 2000.
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