Heavy rains lash parts of Uttarakhand, trigger landslides and road closures

DEHRADUN: Parts of Uttarakhand were lashed with heavy rains throughout Wednesday, August 12, and Thursday, August 13, and resulted in water logging and landslides at several places. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), heavy rains are expected at various places all over the state in the next two-three days. Besides IMD, various other organisations have sounded an alert for flash floods, torrential rains and landslides in the coming days.

Earlier on Wednesday, the State Disaster Management Centre (SDMC) had warned of the possibility of heavy to very heavy rains in various parts of the state. All District Magistrates were directed to take precautionary measures in order to avoid the possibility of an avoidable disaster wreaking havoc in the region. Official Flood Forecast of the Central Water Commission (CWC) also tweeted about weather forecast and said the authorities need to coordinate precautionary measures throughout states like Uttarakhand, eastern region of Rajasthan and western region of Madhya Pradesh.

Meanwhile, heavy and incessant rains, coupled with landslides, led to temporary closure of the Gangotri National Highway for nearly 30 hours. Areas near the Indo-China border were also affected. The national highway leading to Badrinath and Kedarnath shrines was blocked at several points due to falling of boulders after rain lashed Rishikesh in Uttarakhand’s Dehradun district early on Wednesday. The traffic was temporarily stopped to clear the highway.

The Ganga was flowing 10-cm above the warning level, and its water level continues to rise, Saklani said. The water level of Henwal river, a tributary of the Ganga, has also risen and families living close to it have been shifted to safer places, the officer said.