Heavy rains lash Uttarakhand: Badrinath Yatra halted as precautionary measure, red alert in Chamoli
By Team Newsable | First Published Oct 18, 2021, 2:33 PM ISTThe red alert prompted the hill state's government to halt pilgrims on the Char Dham yatra route, including the Badrinath Yatra, at several spots and advised them to not continue until the weather improves.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for Uttarakhand with a forecast of heavy to very heavy rainfall in Uttarakhand.
Following the red alert, devotees on Badrinath yatra have been stopped at Pandukeswar by the district administration.
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The Dehradun-unit of the IMD has warned of heavy to very heavy rains accompanied by lightning, hail and high-speed winds (60-70 kmph) in 13 districts of Uttarakhand, including Dehradun, Haridwar, Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Tehri, Udham Singh Nagar, Rudraprayag, Pithoragarh, Almora, Nainital, Champawat, Bageshwar, and Pauri Garhwal.
"Heavy to very heavy rainfall with extremely heavy falls very likely at isolated places over Uttarakhand and West Uttar Pradesh," IMD said in its daily weather bulletin issued on Monday morning.
The IMD has further stated that the temperature in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district has plummeted, particularly in the Pipalkoti, Ghat, and Pokhari areas, as well as in the district headquarters Gopeshwar.
Most schools and educational institutions in Uttarakhand have also been shut for the day owing to the heavy rainfall. Trekking, mountaineering, and camping activities in the state's high-altitude zones have been prohibited until Tuesday as a precautionary measure in light of the Met Department's heavy rainfall alert.
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami has taken stock of the situation arising in the wake of heavy rainfall across the state and directed all the district magistrates to give an hourly report of the rain and traffic situation in their respective districts, said CMO.
He asked police personnel and the state disaster response force (SDRF) to be on high alert at sensitive places.
"The agencies should be prepared to respond to any emergency arising out of the weather change. Response time should be less as much as possible with immediate relief for the affected people," said Dhami.
Meanwhile, Dhankhar village in Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh and Upper reaches of Badrinath in Uttrakhand received snowfall today.
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