Heavy rain triggers floods, landslides in Gujarat, Uttarakhand
Landslides in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand blocked the Badrinath National Highway for the second time on Saturday.
Heavy rain has triggered flash floods and landslides in Uttarakhand and Gujarat along with other parts of northern India. The India Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert in certain parts of Uttarakhand till July 5. Landslides in the Chamoli district of the state blocked the Badrinath National Highway for the second time on Saturday.
Speaking about the rapid advancement of the monsoon in the country, IMD scientist Soma Sen told ANI earlier, “The monsoon is active currently with its rapid advancement in the last 4-5 days. Leaving some parts of northwest India, the monsoon has impacted almost the entire country. Entire Gujarat and south-east Rajasthan have been covered by the monsoon."
Nine people have lost their lives due to rain-related incidents in Gujarat in the past two days. Visuals posted by news agency ANI also showed river water entering the low-lying residential areas in the state.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday spoke to Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel about the prevailing situation in the state. He said that the NDRF and SDRF teams are working hand-in-hand with the local administration to help the people. Shah tweeted in Hindi, “I talked to the Chief Minister Shri @Bhupendrapbjp ji and inquired about the situation. NDRF and SDRF teams and local administration are engaged in helping people in these areas. The Central Government and the State Government are standing with the people in this difficult time.”
Meanwhile, visuals of monsoon havoc also surfaced from other parts of the country. In a video posted by PTI, several cars and bikes were seen damaged as over 50 trees fell amid heavy rainfall in Puducherry on Sunday.
(With agencies' inputs)