A major landslide blocked a road on National Highway 707 near Shimla’s Rohana after heavy rains in Himachal Pradesh. The highway, which connects Hatkoti and Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh, has been closed.
A 30-second video shows a massive portion of a hill crumbling and falling on the road and large rocks blocking the route.
So far, over 80 roads across Himachal Pradesh have been closed. Thirty-eight roads in Mandi, 14 in Kullu, five in Shimla, four in Sirmaur and one in Kangra district are closed for traffic following heavy rains on Saturday.
Heavy rain has battered the hill state over the last week, with rainfall in Kangra’s Dharamshala and Palampur exceeding the 200-mm mark.
The centre also said that 154 transformers are disrupted and 26 water supply schemes have been affected in the state.
A ‘yellow alert’ has been issued by the Shimla meteorological office, warning of heavy rain, thunderstorms and lightning over the next week till July 12. The weather office has also warned of flash floods in areas of Kangra, Kullu, Kinnaur, Mandi, Sirmaur and Shimla in the next 24 hours.
So far, the state has received 72.1 mm of rain against the normal of 35 mm, an excess of 106 per cent in July. Kukumseri in Lahaul and Spiti recorded the lowest night temperature at 11.6 degrees Celsius while Chamba was the hottest during the day with a maximum temperature of 34.1 degrees.
In neighbouring Utttarakhand, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted heavy to extremely heavy rain over the next few days. “Thunderstorms with lightning and intense to very intense spells are likely on July 8-9 in the hills and plains of the state,” the forecast said.
Chamoli, Rudraprayag, and Pauri districts of Uttarakhand have been the worst affected.
