By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 18 Oct: Incessant rains during the past two days have wreaked havoc in Uttarakhand. Four persons died due to landslides that occurred due to heavy rains. Secretary, Disaster Management, SA Murugesan confirmed the death of 4 persons. He disclosed that 20 places in the state had received heavy rainfall during the past 24 hours. Due to the current spell of rain, three persons died, while two were injured when the roof of a house collapsed in Lansdowne Tehsil area of Pauri district. In Champawat district, a woman died due to house collapse, even as a man was still reported to be buried. Rescue operations were underway to rescue him.
Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah called up Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to seek information about the situation in the state. He also assured the CM all possible help from the Centre. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also sought detailed information from district administrations across the state about the situation caused by the heavy rains. The CM also reached the State Disaster Control Centre and spoke to the DMs over the phone from there to enquire about the situation.
According to Disaster Management Minister Dhan Singh Rawat, orders were issued to all the districts to be on alert and the Char Dham Yatra had been put on hold due to the incessant rains. All the pilgrims going to or returning from Kedarnath or Badrinath were safe, he reported, but they had been told to stay at safe places for the next two days instead of travelling further or back. Rawat claimed that the government was prepared to deal with any eventuality over the next two days.
According to the reports reaching here, in Jaiharikhal block of Pauri Garhwal, a girl child, including two Nepali women workers, died on the spot, while the other two were injured after being buried under the debris that fell due to heavy rains. Due to heavy rains, debris started falling from the hill near village Samkhal in the Lansdowne-Gumkhal motor road of the block. The labourers working near the incident site were living in a hut 100 metres below the road. The other labourers managed to get out, but the two women and the child could not escape. In Champawat, too, a woman died after being buried under the debris.
While the CM was at the Control Room, the DM of Rudraprayag informed him that there were 6000 devotees in the Kedarnath temple on Sunday, out of which 4000 had returned by today morning, while the remaining 2000 pilgrims were in secure places. Chief Minister Dhami also enquired about the national highways and other connectivity routes.
The Chief Minister took the latest updates from the District Magistrate, Pauri, and District Magistrate, Rudraprayag, by phone. He directed the officers to ensure that any highway getting blocked due to rains was cleared for traffic movement at the earliest. Special precautions will be taken in the areas where heavy rainfall is recorded. Additional Chief Secretary Anand Vardhan, Secretary, Disaster Management, SA Murugeshan, Additional Chief Executive Officer Riddhim Agarwal, Jitendra Sonkar, and Dr Anand Srivastava were present in the meeting.
Kedarnath, Badrinath and Yamunotri Dhams have received snowfall on the higher peaks. Heavy snowfall has occurred in the higher Himalayan regions of Dharchula and Munsyari. The road is obstructed due to debris at many places on the Gangotri and Yamunotri highways. The Badrinath-National Highway has been closed at Kaliasaur and Sirobgad. Because of this, the passengers are stuck there. Vehicles are being stopped at Pauri Chungi and Shrikot. The Tanakpur-Pithoragarh National Highway is closed due to debris at eight places.
According to Vikram Singh, Director, State Weather Centre of the Government of India, there has been a sudden change of weather due to the combination of the activity of Western Disturbance and cold winds coming from the South-Eastern region. In the next 24 hours, also, there is a possibility of heavy to very heavy rain in all the districts including Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Almora, Nainital, Champawat, Pithoragarh, Bageshwar, Tehri and Pauri, including capital Doon. Very heavy rains are likely at isolated places in some areas of these districts.
The paddy crop has been damaged due to torrential rains in Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital district. At the same time, in Tanakpur, also, the crop has been damaged due to rain. Paddy crop has been damaged due to heavy rains in Sailanigoth. The Tanakpur-Champawat road has been closed in the Kumaon region.
