Himachal Pradesh On Red Alert: Landslides, Cloudbursts And Flash Floods Leave State Reeling

Heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods across Himachal Pradesh on Monday night, causing massive damage to infrastructure and property. Officials said on Tuesday that while shops were swept away, buildings collapsed, highways were cut off, and residential areas inundated, no casualties have been reported so far.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), a total of 690 roads remain blocked across the state as of Tuesday morning. Mandi district accounts for 320 closures, while 132 roads are shut in Kullu.

The Meteorological Department has sounded a red alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall in Kangra, Chamba, and Mandi districts on Tuesday. An orange alert has also been issued, forecasting heavy rain in parts of Mandi, Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur on Friday, and in Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, and Shimla districts on Saturday.

In Kullu district's Manali, strong currents of the Beas River washed away a multi-storey hotel and four shops in the early hours of Tuesday. The rising waters also entered the Alu Ground area, while the Chandigarh-Manali national highway suffered damage at multiple points. Nearly 200 meters of the Manali-Leh highway was washed away, leaving tourists stranded as authorities closed the route.

The situation worsened on Manali's Right Bank Road, which connects Kullu city, with two major sections of the national highway washed away. The Manali-Burua road near Old Manali was also destroyed. "Connectivity to Manali from the right bank has been cut off. Since Monday, four shops, two restaurants, and one house have been damaged," said Raman Sharma, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Manali.

The water level of the Beas rose further after 20,000 cusec of water was released from the Largi Dam. Authorities have urged residents and tourists to stay away from riverbanks and landslide-prone slopes.

In Kullu, overflowing waters from the Ghanvi Khud stream entered houses. In Mandi district's Balichowki area, two buildings housing around 40 shops collapsed late Monday night, though no casualties were reported as the structures had been evacuated beforehand.

Rainfall data recorded since Monday evening shows Naina Devi received the heaviest showers at 160.8 mm, followed by Bhattiyat with 125.2 mm, Manali and Dharamshala with 102 mm each, Ghamroor with 91.4 mm, Kangra with 89 mm, Palampur with 88 mm, Kothi with 85.8 mm, Bhunter with 77.2 mm, Guler with 71.8 mm, and Karsog with 65.2 mm.

Since June 20, Himachal Pradesh has witnessed 156 deaths in rain-related incidents, while 38 people remain missing. SEOC data shows the state has reported 78 flash floods, 41 cloudbursts, and 82 major landslides this monsoon season. The cumulative loss from rain-related disasters has been estimated at Rs 2,394 crore.

With Ani Input