New Delhi: Incessant rains battered northern states Thursday, cutting off Kashmir from the rest of India, worsening the flood situation in Himachal Pradesh, and raising the Yamuna’s water level to a threatening mark in Delhi.
Educational institutions have been shut down, normal life has been adversely affected and business has come to a standstill due to the heavy rains and flood-like situation in states like Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh.
Floods damaged more than 110 km of the India-Pakistan international border (IB) fence and inundated about 90 BSF posts in the forward areas of Jammu and Punjab, official sources said on Thursday.
About 80 km of the IB fence in Punjab and around 30km of it in Jammu have been damaged by the floods that have wreaked havoc. The fence at these places has either submerged, uprooted or tilted, officials said. The force has now begun a “mega exercise” in these two areas to restore the fence and the border outposts (BOPs) so that troops can occupy them again, an official told PTI.
Two houses collapsed following a landslide in Himachal Pradesh’s Kullu district Thursday, leaving one person dead and six more buried under the rubble, officials said.
A team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) rescued three people, including a woman, and recovered one body.
Incessant rains in the past three to four days have triggered landslides at several places and three people have been rescued, one body recovered while search is on for six people buried under the rubble of the house in Akhada Bazaar, Deputy Commissioner, Kullu, Torul S Ravish said, adding rains are obstructing the rescue work.
A total of 1,292 roads are closed in the state, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said. Since the onset of monsoon in Himachal June 20, the state has witnessed 95 flash floods, 45 cloudbursts and 127 major landslide incidents.
At least 343 people have died in rain-related incidents and road accidents, while 43 are missing since the monsoon began.
The state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 3,690 crore this monsoon so far, according to official data.
In Uttarakhand, a forest officer has died after being swept away by an overflowing drain in Nanital district, officials said Thursday. Also, a total of 54 roads, including national highways, are blocked due to landslides in the hill state, they added.
According to the SEOC, Devendra Singh (35) was swept away in the Dhaniyakot drain in the Kainchidham area of Nainital Wednesday evening.
The Kashmir valley was cut off from the rest of the country as all surface links, including the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, were closed for traffic Thursday due to multiple landslides and the washing away of road patches due to rain.
The closure of highways and other inter-regional roads since August 26 has resulted in over 3,500 vehicles getting stuck at various places from Kathua to Kashmir.
Besides this, important highways, including the Jammu-Rajouri-Poonch highway and the Batote-Doda-Kishtwar highway, are shut for traffic in view of landslides and the washing away of portions of roads.
Rail traffic has remained suspended in the Jammu railway division for the past nine days due to misalignment and breaches at multiple locations in the Pathankot-Jammu section following heavy rains and flash floods August 26.
Scores of people, especially pilgrims, were stranded as heavy rains lashed the Jammu region since August 26, severely disrupting rail and road traffic.
A landslide near the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra claimed 34 lives.
The water level in the Yamuna at Delhi’s Old Railway Bridge remained steady at 207.46 metres between 11 am and 12 noon Thursday, officials said.
They added that the level is expected to begin receding gradually, though floodwaters continue to inundate nearby areas and relief camps.
Floodwaters reached near Delhi Secretariat, which houses the offices of the chief minister, cabinet ministers and key bureaucrats. Floodwaters also reached the Shri Marghat Wale Hanuman Baba Mandir near Kashmere Gate.
“Every year, when the water level of the Yamuna rises, it bathes the idol of Lord Hanuman. This is holy water. We revere it,” said a devotee.
Waterlogging caused by incessant rain over the past couple of days combined with Yamuna flooding led to major traffic snarls.
According to the revenue department, 8,018 people have been moved to tents, while 2,030 have been shifted to 13 permanent shelters.
Punjab is currently facing one of its worst flood disasters in decades. The floods are a result of swollen rivers, the Sutlej, Beas and Ravi, along with seasonal rivulets caused by heavy rainfall in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
The deluge has claimed 37 lives so far and impacted over 3.55 lakh people. Crops on more than 1.75 lakh hectares of land have perished in the floods, officials stated.
Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan Thursday visited flood-hit areas in Punjab’s Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts, where he interacted with people, including farmers, affected by the deluge.
The Punjab government Wednesday extended the closure of all schools, colleges and universities till September 7 due to the prevailing flood situation in the state.
In Haryana, the state’s Public Health and Engineering Minister Ranbir Gangwa Wednesday convened an emergency meeting, directing officials to ensure immediate drainage and uninterrupted drinking water supply across the state.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma Thursday directed MLAs to conduct intensive inspections in their constituencies for three days from September 5 to 7 to ensure relief to people affected by heavy rains and floods in the state.
PTI
