Constant and torrential rains also affected the northern states on Thursday. Himachal Pradesh has been in the grip of natural disaster since the beginning of the monsoon and Delhi has also been affected due to the rise in the water level of the Yamuna river.
Educational institutions have been closed due to heavy rains and floods in states like Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh, normal life has been badly affected and trade has come to a standstill. Officials said two houses collapsed due to landslides in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh on Thursday, killing one person and six people were buried in the rubble.
A team of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) took out three people, including a woman, and recovered a body.
Kullu Deputy Commissioner Torul S Ravish said that due to the rain for the last three-four days, landslides occurred in many places. According to him, the search for six people buried under the debris in the Akhara market area is going on, three people have been evacuated and a dead body has been recovered. He said that the rescue work is being interrupted by rain.
According to the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) of Himachal, a total of 1,292 roads are closed in the state, out of which 294 mandi, 226 Kullu, 216 Shimla, 204 Chamba and 91 are in Sirmaur district.
The local meteorological center has released a ‘Yellow Alert’ on Friday and Saturday for the possibility of rain and rains at some places in the state.
So far, at least 343 people have died and 43 people are missing in rain -related incidents and road accidents. According to official data, the state has suffered a loss of Rs 3,690 crore so far in this monsoon.
The Kashmir Valley is cut off from the rest of the country, as the roads were shut down on Thursday due to landslides and rain on other ground routes including Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.
More than 3,500 vehicles are stranded at various places from Kathua to Kashmir due to the closure of highways and other inter-regional roads since August August. The highway was partially opened on Monday for the movement of trapped vehicles. Apart from this, other important routes including Jammu-Rajouri-Poonch highway and Batote-Doda-Kishtwar highway are also closed for traffic due to landslides and roads flowing.
Rail traffic in Jammu Railway Division has been closed for the last nine days. After heavy rains on August 26 and sudden floods, the tracks were sunk at many places in the Pathankot-Jammu section.
Pilgrims are trapped in Jammu region, especially due to continuous rains and rail and road traffic has been badly disrupted. 34 people lost their lives in a landslide incident near Mata Vaishno Devi temple in Katra.
Officials said that the water level of Yamuna on the old railway bridge (old lame bridge) of Delhi remained stable at 207.46 meters from 11 am to 12 noon on Thursday. He said that the water level could start decreasing gradually, although the flood water is still filled in the surrounding areas and relief camps.
The flood water reached the Delhi Secretariat, where the office of the Chief Minister, Cabinet Ministers and senior officials is located. The flood water also reached the Hanuman Baba temple with Shri Marghat near Kashmiri Gate.
A devotee said, “Every year when the water level of Yamuna rises, it takes a bath to the idol of Lord Hanuman. It is holy water, we consider it to be revered.”
It was dualizing for Delhiites as waterlogging and floods of Yamuna together severely affected traffic.
According to the revenue department, 8,018 people have been transferred to tents and 2,030 people have been transferred to 13 permanent shelter sites.
Punjab is currently facing the most severe floods in decades. Due to heavy rains in the catchment areas of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, this flood has occurred on the rise of seasonal drains along with Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers.
Officials said that so far 37 people have died in the flood and more than 3.55 lakh people have been affected. Crops have been destroyed on agricultural land of more than 1.75 lakh hectares.
Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan visited the flood affected areas of Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts of Punjab on Thursday and interacted with the affected people including farmers.
The Punjab government on Wednesday extended the holidays of all schools, colleges and universities till September 7 in view of the current flood situation in the state.
State Public Health and Engineering Minister Ranbir Gangwa in Haryana called an emergency meeting on Wednesday and instructed the officials to ensure immediate drainage and uninterrupted supply of drinking water across the state.
