New Delhi/Shimla, July 29: At least five people were killed over the past 24 hours and several national highways were closed as heavy rains lashed parts of north India, including Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.
In Himachal’s Mandi, flash floods triggered by a cloudburst created havoc on Monday night, killing three people and burying more than 20 vehicles, officials said on Tuesday.
In the national capital, severe traffic snarls and widespread waterlogging disrupted movement across the city on Tuesday after heavy showers, forcing commuters to wade through deluged roads and streets.
In Civil Lines area of the city, a 40-year-old woman and her son died while two others were injured after the wall of an under-construction building near the lieutenant governor’s house collapsed due to rain. The deceased were identified as Meera and his son Ganpath (17).
The worst affected areas in Mandi, which received 198.6 mm of rain since Monday evening, were Jail Road, Saini Mohalla and Zonal Hospital.
“Three people died, one sustained injuries while one woman is missing,” Deputy Commissioner, Mandi, Apoorva Devgan told PTI, adding that rescue operations are in full swing and about 15-20 people have been rescued.
The three deceased included a mother and son.
A relief camp has been set up at Vipasha Sadan as several houses have been damaged and some people have shifted to safer places and taken shelter at homes of their friends and relatives, Devgan said.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police and home guard have been pressed into rescue operations, while teams from various government departments are working to clear roads and restore power supply, the DC added.
A total of 269 roads, including three national highways, are blocked in the disaster-hit Mandi district, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).
The Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (21) has been blocked at several places between Mandi and Kullu after the road stretches were washed away while Mandi-Jogindernagar road (NH-154) and Mandi-Kotali road (NH-70) are also closed for vehicular traffic.
Inconvenience was caused to a large number of tourists, who were stranded between Mandi and Manali on the Chandigarh-Manali National Highway.
The fresh disaster came after a month of monsoon mayhem in the Mandi district in which 15 people were killed on the night of June 30-July 1.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has expressed grief over the loss of three lives in Mandi town, and said that the district administration has been directed to provide all possible assistance to the affected families, a statement issued here said.
Moderate to very heavy rains lashed several parts of the state, and Mandi received 198.6 mm of rain since Monday evening followed by Pandoh 124 mm, Kataula 89.1 mm, Dehra Gopipur 74 mm, Berthin 72.4 mm, Nadaun and Una 72 mm each, and Gohar and Sujanpur Tira 66 mm each.
The local Met office had issued an ‘orange alert’ of heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated areas of Kangra, Mandi and Kullu districts on Tuesday. Since the onset of monsoon in the state on June 20, 90 people have died and 35 have gone missing in rain-related incidents.
In Delhi, the Public Works Department (PWD) said around 90 calls regarding waterlogging were received at its flood control room on Tuesday morning.
PWD Minister Parvesh Verma asserted that there was no waterlogging at hotspots like Minto Bridge underpass, Moolchand underpass, and Pul Prahladpur.
“Changing Delhi: From waterlogging to relief! There were spots where water used to accumulate every monsoon, but now traffic passes through without stopping. The Delhi of dreams is no longer just a promise; it is becoming a reality,” Verma said on X in Hindi as he shared videos of smooth traffic movement at the three spots.
However, PWD officials said waterlogging was reported at the Minto Bridge underpass, and traffic had to be diverted due to it for a brief period.
A ‘red alert’ was issued for Tuesday morning, which was later downgraded to an ‘orange alert’ after 11 am.
In Rajasthan, heavy rains have led to a flood-like situation and rivers are in spate in many districts forcing authorities to open gates of various dams, the weather office said on Tuesday.
Villages in low-lying areas downstream of the swollen rivers have been submerged. Rivers in several districts, including Kota, Bundi, Jhalawar, Dholpur and Tonk, are overflowing following heavy downpour.
The state meteorological centre has warned of heavy rains in 29 districts. Amid the warning, schools were closed in 14 districts on Tuesday.
The Baran-Jhalawar highway was also closed due to the overflowing Parwan river. Many villages near Bhawani mandi in Jhalawar district have been submerged due to the flooding of the Rewa river.
The Jhalawar collector and SP said they had to go to the affected areas on a tractor.
In Bundi, Udaipur, and Dausa, schools, houses and roads have been damaged in rain-related incidents.
Two rooms of Government Senior Secondary School in Peepla Gram Panchayat, Kotda, Udaipur, collapsed on Monday night.
During the 24-hour period till 8:30 am Tuesday, light to heavy rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms was recorded at many places in east Rajasthan. The highest rainfall in the state was recorded at Atru (Baran) at 109 mm.
Rajasthan has received nearly 85 per cent more rainfall than normal so far this monsoon season, placing a majority of its districts under the “large excess” rainfall category.
According to the state water resources department, the state recorded 374.58 mm of rainfall against the normal average of 202.51 mm from June 1 to July 29, an increase of 84.96 per cent.
With this surplus, the state has been categorised under the “large excess” rainfall category, defined as 60 per cent or more above normal. Out of 41 districts, 27 fall under this classification.
Rains also lashed several parts of Punjab and Haryana. According to the Met office in Chandigarh which was also hit by rains, Gurdaspur in Punjab received 96.7 mm of rain during the 24-hour period till 8:30 am Tuesday.
Other places in Punjab which received rains during this period included Ludhiana (20.6 mm), Patiala (22 mm), Fatehgarh Sahib (21 mm), Hoshiarpur (52 mm), Mohali (17.5 mm), Anandpur Sahib (16.5 mm) and Balachaur (80.5 mm).
In Haryana, Narnaul and Rohtak were lashed by 25.6 mm and 15.4 mm rain, respectively during the past 24 hours. Gurugram received 11 mm of rain while Bawal in Rewari received 16 mm. (PTI)
