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Hoshiarpur man killed after boulder hits car in Chamba
The deceased Makkhan Singh, 40, of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab along with four others was en route to Bharmour to undertake the Manimahesh yatra when the mishap occurred near Mehla at around 3 am, police said.
One person was killed and four others were injured after the vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a massive boulder that rolled down a hillside on the Chamba-Bharmour highway in Himachal’s Chamba district, police said on Wednesday.
The deceased Makkhan Singh, 40, of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab along with four others was en route to Bharmour to undertake the Manimahesh yatra when the mishap occurred near Mehla at around 3 am, they added.
The boulder shattered the SUV’s sunroof and struck Singh. He was taken to Pt Jawaharlal Nehru Government Medical College and Hospital, Chamba, where doctors declared him brought dead.
The body was sent for a post-mortem examination, and family members of the victim have been informed about the tragedy, police said.
Many people undertake Manimahesh Yatra at this time of the year, with large numbers of pilgrims travelling towards Bharmour where Manimahesh lake is situated. The continuous rainfall in recent days has triggered an increase in landslides and rockfalls along the Chamba-Bharmour route.
Rains lash parts of Himachal
Rains continued to lash parts of Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Shimla, predicting more showers across the state in the coming days.
Showers were reported in Shimla and several other parts of the state, including Kullu, Dharamshala, Solan, Mandi and Sirmaur.
The rainfall also triggered landslides and rockfalls at several locations, disrupting normal life. According to authorities, as many as 112 roads remained blocked across the state on Wednesday. Mandi district reported the highest number of road closures, with 37 roads blocked, followed by Kullu with 34 and Sirmaur with 26.
The Chandigarh-Manali highway was blocked during the early morning hours after rainfall triggered a landslide near Hanogi in Mandi district. The closure led to traffic congestion on both sides of the highway. An official said the road was reopened to traffic after remaining blocked for around two hours.
Heavy showers till August 11
According to IMD, heavy showers are expected to continue in parts of the state till August 11. The weather office has sounded a yellow alert of heavy rainfall in Bilaspur, Kangra and Sirmaur districts for August 6, followed by a similar alert on August 7 in Sirmaur district and on August 8 in Kangra and Sirmaur districts.
A yellow alert of heavy rainfall has also been sounded in Una, Bilaspur, Kangra and Sirmaur districts on August 9. During the last 24 hours, light to moderate rainfall was observed at most places and heavy to very heavy rain was observed at isolated places in the state.
