Shimla, Aug 4: Heavy rains in Himachal Pradesh wreak havoc in the region, and an official spokesperson of Public Works Department estimates the loss to public property at Rs 300 crore. He further said that out of the estimated damage, Rs 226.81 crore was incurred by the Public Works Department.
On Thursday, five vehicles were washed away and several roads and huts faced damages. The official also confirmed that sixty kuccha roads, seven concrete houses, 29 cowsheds and 10 huts were damaged in the state and the Hatkoti-Theog National Highway remained blocked for five hours.
A revenue official said that heavy machinery sank in a marshy area on the national highway, thereby blocking it. These, however, have been lifted now and the traffic flow has resumed.
The official confirmed that another five houses in Chamba district’s Pangi area, 42 kuccha house, 10 huts and 17 cowsheds in Kangra district faced the wrath of the rains.
“Three houses and seven cowsheds in Mandi (where three cows died) and five cowsheds and 15 houses in Shimla district’s Rohru area have been wacked out,” Deputy Commissioner Rohan Chand Thakur said.
Heavy rains have also lashed several areas of state and Dehra Gopipur was the wettest in the region with 123 mm rains.
On Tuesday, too, a flash flood triggered by heavy rains hit Gazan village of Kullu at 2.30am. Although no loss of human life was reported, the flood gave heavy damages to the village. It wreaked five vehicles, two houses, roads, a patch of forest, private land and village trails.
The villagers said they were woken up by the sounds of gushing water and colliding boulders. Terrified, they rushed out to find the source of deafening sounds, they found the lower portion of the village submerged in water. The damage could have been worse but for the fact that the lower portion of the village is sparsely populated, they said.
Even the residents of nearby Dhamsu village reported that the Kullu-Manali bypass road was filled with water. Panchayat pradhan Balbir Rana said three tractors, a car and a motorbike were damaged.
Source Times Of India
