Himachal Pradesh continues to reel under relentless rainfall as 5 cloudbursts struck different parts of the state on Friday night and Saturday morning, causing extensive damage to homes, vehicles, and apple orchards. The affected areas include Hidav, Sharchi, and Bashla in Kullu, Badhal in Jury (Rampur), and Churah in Chamba district.
In Rampur’s 12/20 area, landslides damaged five houses severely, with a father and son getting trapped under debris before being rescued by villagers. Meanwhile, 6,000 Manimahesh pilgrims stranded along the pilgrimage route were evacuated using government and private vehicles.
Chief Secretary informed during a review meeting in Shimla on Saturday that 5,000 pilgrims remain stranded in Bharmour while 500 are stuck at Chaugan. The Bharmour-Pathankot highway remains closed beyond Rajera, with approximately 20 kilometers of road completely washed away. Road connectivity to Bharmour-Pangi and Churah has been severed from the rest of the world.
The Chandigarh-Manali four-lane highway has been closed for traffic near Hanogi due to a hill collapse at Khoti stream. In Gohar sub-division’s Katwardhi village under Nandi panchayat, two shops, one car, and an industrial unit suffered damage.
Multiple bridges washed away in Chamba
In Chamba’s Churah, a cloudburst on Santnala hill on Friday night caused water levels to rise, washing away five bridges including those connecting Bairagadh, Devikothi, and Tepa. The Santnala bridge linking the road network and Tarwai bridge were among those destroyed, completely cutting off communication to Tepa and Devikothi panchayats.
Near Bashla village in Shilli gram panchayat under sub-tehsil Nitthar, a cloudburst occurred around 10 PM on Friday. While no casualties were reported, four houses and apple orchards suffered heavy damage.
Kullu district faces twin cloudbursts
Kullu district witnessed two cloudburst incidents on Friday night in Banjar area at Hidav stream and Sharchi stream. The cloudburst around 11 PM left residents in panic throughout the night. At Hidav stream, one house was damaged along with a fish farm, two houses partially damaged, and two temples affected. Six water mills, a forest department bridge, and a car were washed away.
The Sharchi stream in Banjar’s Tirthan valley also experienced a cloudburst, though damage assessment there remains limited. Both incidents caused flooding in the Tirthan river, keeping riverside residents awake throughout the night.
Infrastructure severely affected
As of Saturday evening, three national highways along with 839 roads, 728 electricity transformers, and 456 drinking water schemes remained non-functional across the state. The Pong dam released 1.1 lakh cusecs of water on Saturday due to rising water levels.
In Naddi, the main pipeline of the drinking water scheme broke due to landslides, deepening the water crisis in the city. The tehsil office in Dharamshala was flooded on Saturday due to heavy rainfall.
Tourist evacuation operations
On Saturday, approximately 6,000 pilgrims were evacuated from Bharmour on foot and from Kalasui using HRTC buses, private buses, school buses, and taxis toward Pathankot. Officials claim nearly 90% of pilgrims in Bharmour have been safely rescued. Some Punjab pilgrims who came to Manimahesh from Pangi remain stranded due to the washed-away highway from Kilad to Manali.
The Kullu-Manali route has been temporarily restored for light vehicles after five days, facilitating movement of people and transportation of apples to markets. The Manali-Leh route via Rohtang Pass has also been reopened by the Border Roads Organisation, which has temporarily opened Highway 3 at Pagalnala near Sissu.
Weather warnings continue
An orange alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall has been issued for Chamba, Kangra, and Kullu districts on Sunday. Yellow alerts for heavy rain have been issued for Mandi, Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur. For Monday, yellow alerts have been issued for Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Mandi, and Shimla districts.
Recent rainfall data shows Dharamshala recording 72mm, Palampur 60mm, Nahan 60mm, Kangra 41mm, Narkanda 40mm, Manali 24mm, and Una 12mm of precipitation.
The continuing monsoon fury has highlighted the vulnerability of Himachal Pradesh’s mountainous terrain to extreme weather events, with rescue operations ongoing across multiple districts to ensure the safety of residents and tourists.
