Himachal: Flash floods hit Lahaul-Spiti, disrupting road connectivity

Flash floods occurred in Lahaul-Spiti's Mayar Valley and Chowkhang Naingar area, disrupting road connectivity. MLA Anuradha Rana said restoration work is underway. The state has recorded 197 deaths during the monsoon disaster period since June 30.

Flash Floods Disrupt Connectivity in Lahaul-Spiti

Flash floods occurred in the Karpat Nallah of the Mayar Valley and the Gawadi Nallah in the Chowkhang Naingar area of the tribal Lahaul-Spiti district in Himachal Pradesh, disrupting road connectivity. According to Lahaul-Spiti MLA Anuradha Rana, the road in Karpat village has been blocked due to the flood. However, the flood control works carried out earlier in Mayar Valley helped protect the village to a large extent.

"The administration and concerned departments have been directed to conduct an on-site inspection and take appropriate action," Rana said. She said efforts were made to restore the Chowkhang Naingar road, but the route could not be reopened due to repeated flooding. "Restoration work will resume on Wednesday," she added. The MLA also informed that the administration and concerned departments have been instructed to assess the damage caused by the floods.

Widespread Monsoon Devastation in Himachal

Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh continues to face the impact of heavy rainfall, landslides and flash floods during the ongoing monsoon season. The state has recorded 197 deaths in 50 days of the monsoon disaster period since June 30, with 81 fatalities attributed to rain-related disasters and 116 due to road accidents. The cumulative losses have crossed Rs 1,000 crore.

Infrastructure Damage and Restoration

According to the latest State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) data released on Tuesday evening, 88 roads remained blocked across Himachal Pradesh as of 5 pm. Restoration work has helped reduce the number of blocked roads from 105 in the morning. Mandi remains the worst-affected district with 32 blocked roads, followed by Kullu with 25 and Sirmaur with 10. Power restoration also gathered pace, with active distribution transformer (DTR) disruptions falling from 36 in the morning to 12 by evening. Hamirpur accounted for nine disrupted transformers, followed by Shimla with two and Kullu with one. The rain has also disrupted 19 water supply schemes across the state, including 12 in Hamirpur, five in Shimla and two in Bilaspur.

Breakdown of Fatalities

Further, of the 197 deaths recorded since June 30, 81 were caused by natural and weather-related disasters. These included 28 deaths due to falls or rockslides, 14 caused by landslides, five by accidental drowning, eight from snake bites and eight from electrocution. (ANI)

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