Several roads, including the key Shimla-Chandigarh road, had to be shut down

Several roads, including the key Shimla-Chandigarh road, had to be shut down

Several roads, including the key Shimla-Chandigarh road, had to be shut down

Heavy rain continues to batter Himachal Pradesh, weeks after a devastating flood wreaked havoc across the state. On Sunday, the hill state witnessed heavy rains that triggered landslides. 

Official sources said five people died after an incident of cloudburst at Jadon village, Kandaghat sub division, in Solan. Three went missing while five others were rescued, ANI quoted SDM Kandaghat Siddhartha Acharya.   

Several roads, including the key Shimla-Chandigarh road, had to be shut down after conditions worsened. Roads in Mandi, Shimla and Bilaspur too were closed for vehicular traffic.

Solan was one of the worst-hit areas after heavy vehicles got stranded on both sides of the road at Chakki Mor near Koti. Small vehicles are being diverted through alternate routes, they added.

The incessant rains for the last 48 hours in Hamirpur district have caused the Beas river to overflow. The worst affected are the areas where the nullahs of Maan and Kunah are located, officials said.

Kangra Deputy Commissioner Niupan Jindal said that due to an increase in the water level of the Beas river flowing through the Pong reservoir following heavy rains, the Bhakra Beas Management Board has decided to release water from Pong Dam from 8 am on Monday.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, in view of the incessant rains, announced the closure of all schools and colleges in the state till August 14, according to a statement issued here on Sunday. The IMD has also predicted moderate rainfall in thirteen districts of Himachal Pradesh and heavy rainfall at one or two places on Monday.

"In the next 24 hours, there is a possibility of moderate rain in Bilaspur, Chamba, Hamirpur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur, Solan, Una, Kinnaur, Lahaul, Spiti and heavy to very heavy rain at one or two places," the alert issued on Sunday evening read.

Uttarakhand

A red alert has been issued for Monday in six districts of Uttarakhand, including Dehradun and Nainital. 

Officials said intense-to-very-heavy spells of rain with thunder and lightning is likely at isolated places in Tehri, Dehradun, Pauri, Champawat, Nainital and Udham Singh Nagar districts. An orange alert has been sounded in Haridwar district.

Authorities in Dehradun and Champawat have ordered the closure of schools in the two districts on Monday. The rains also triggered landslides blocking traffic on various roads, including national highways. Rishikesh-Chamba National Highway was blocked for traffic due to a landslide near Kunjapuri Bagardhar in Tehri while the movement of heavy vehicles has been stopped on Rishikesh-Devprayag-Srinagar National Highways at Sakhnidhar.

Chamoli district also witnessed intense rainfall and resulted in drain water entering inside shops in Pipalkoti. The water level of Nandakini river crossed the danger mark in Nandanagar arean of ​​Chamoli.

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