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Rain mayhem in hill states as religious yatras halted
Landslides and flash floods hit Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir due to heavy rain, leaving destruction and many stranded. The Amarnath Yatra and the Char Dham Yatra were halted, and landslides were reported in Himachal Pradesh. The lack of preparedness for monsoon rains is a concern, with warnings going unheeded since the 2013 floods that killed 6,000 people. At least 43 people have died in Himachal Pradesh since the arrival of the monsoon. The Amarnath Yatra was suspended due to bad weather, and the yatra will resume when conditions improve.
Landslides and flash floods struck several places in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir on Friday as an active monsoon brought heavy rain to much of north-western Himalayas, leaving a wake of destruction and dozens stranded.
Authorities halted the Amarnath Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir and the Char Dham Yatra was stopped at several locations in Uttarakhand. In Himachal, landslides were reported on roads leading to popular hill town of Kasauli as well as on the Shimla-Parwanoo highway.
According to the India Meteorological Department, most of northern India received heavy and moderate amounts of rainfall in 48 hours till Friday, and more light to moderate rainfall was predicted for the next four to five days with heavy rainfall in some pockets of Uttarakhand, which has received 13.7mm of rainfall in the past 24 hours.
The havoc is a reminder of the general lack of preparedness to the annual monsoon rains, which are predicted to only become worse as the climate crisis shifts weather patterns. It was in 2013 when a sudden surge in monsoon rains led to catastrophic flooding that claimed the lives of 6,000 people in Uttarakhand. Since then, warnings about the need for better preparedness, forecasting and measures to protect the Himalayan ecology have only gone unheeded.
According to the Himachal Pradesh emergency operation centres, at least 43 people have died in the state in rain-related incidents since the arrival of monsoon on June 24.
Among the recent deaths was that of a man killed when the roof of a Gurdwara collapsed in Simraur district. In Chadatgarh village, 130 people stuck at a cremation ground that was flooded by a flash flood were rescued after hours when they sought shelter to nearby roofs.
In Uttarakhand, officials said the Char Dham yatra was halted at Uttarkashi, Dehradun and Pithoragarh districts because of landslides on major roads. In Dharma valley of Pithoragarh district, over 100 villagers were cut off from the rest of the state after heavy rain led to landslides and flooding washed away the only bridges.
Heavy rain caused water logging in Nainital, Haridwar, Dehradun and US Nagar districts with close to 100 roads blocked across the state.
The Uttarakhand disaster management secretary Ranjit Kumar Sinha directed district magistrates of Haridwar, Nainital and Pithoragarh to remain on high alert for rising water levels of the rivers. In all, 150 road blockades was reported from the state.
In Jammu and Kashmir, officials said, the Amarnath Yatra was suspended along the Baltal and the Pahalgam routes since Friday morning. Senior Superintendent of Police (Ramban) Mohita Sharma, “The yatra has been suspended due to inclement weather in the Pahalgam belt.”
Heavy showers that started early on Friday forced the suspension of the pilgrimage, the officials added.
According to officials in Jammu, while a batch of 4,600 pilgrims on its way to the Pahalgam base camp have been stopped in Chanderkote, another group of 2,410 devotees travelling to the Baltal camp has been allowed to proceed. The yatra will resume once the weather improves, the officials said.
The rain intensity, however, subsided in coastal parts of Kerala, Karnataka and Goa, where six people died since Wednesday.
(With PTI inputs)
