Rain in Himachal: Kinnaur Kailash Yatra suspended, 413 stranded pilgrims rescued; 617 roads cut off
Shimla (PTI): The Kinnaur Kailash Yatra was suspended and 413 stranded devotees were rescued after heavy rain damaged the pilgrimage route in Himachal Pradesh, officials said on Wednesday.
The devotees were stranded after two makeshift bridges at Tanglippi and Kangarang were washed away due to the increased water flow in streams, they said.
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) shared videos of rescue operations on X, which showed pilgrims ziplining from one end of the streams to the other.
The Kinnaur district administration received a distress call about the pilgrims stranded on the trek route. In response to the call, the ITBP and the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) launched the rescue operations, the officials said.
The Kinnaur district administration suspended the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra after the rain led to significant damage along the pilgrimage route. Most of the trekking paths have become either dangerously slippery or have been hit by landslides, posing a serious threat to the safety of pilgrims, according to the officials.
In view of these adverse conditions, the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra is being temporarily suspended until further notice, an official order said.
Pilgrims currently on the route have been safely sheltered at Milling Khata and Gufa, and all necessary arrangements have been made for their safety.
Kinnaur Kailash, considered to be the winter residence of Lord Shiva, is located at an altitude of 19,850 feet.
The yatra began on July 15 and will conclude on August 30.
Heavy rain also upended life in other parts of the state, leading to the closure of 617 roads, including four national highways, and educational institutions.
Moderate to heavy rain continued to lash parts of the state.
Kasauli has received 145 mm of rain since Tuesday night, Dharampur 122.8 mm, Gohar 120 mm, Malraon 103.2 mm, Baggi 95.9 mm, Nagrota Suriyan 93.4 mm, Naina Devi 86.4 mm, Sundernagar 80.3 mm, Kangra 71.4 mm, Bilaspur 70.4 mm, Dhaulakuan 67 mm, Mandi 65.8 mm, Shimla 64.4 mm and Dharamshala 64 mm, according to the meteorological centre.
The State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said 617 roads, including four national highways, were cut off on Wednesday. Of these, 377 are in Mandi district, which was recently battered by cloudbursts, landslides and flash floods; and 90 are in Kullu district.
Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (NH 21), Old Hindustan-Tibet Road (NH 05), Mandi-Dharampur (NH 3) and Aut-Sainj road (NH 305) were closed for vehicular traffic following landslides. Shimla-Kalka National Highway, which was blocked at Chakki Mor near Koti in Solan district, has been opened for vehicular movement, the officials said.
Commuters faced a hard time as road closures led to traffic jams at several places.
Educational institutions, including schools, colleges and anganwadis, were closed in Sunni, Kumarsein, Chopal, Dodra Kwar, Jubbal, Theog and Rampur subdivisions of Shimla district, Karsog and Sundernagar in Mandi district, Nirmand in Kullu district, and some subdivisions in Solan district.
Several schools in Shimla city announced holidays or switched to online classes.
Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited (SJPNL) officials cautioned people about disruption in water supply for the next two-three days due to high turbidity at the source.
Since the onset of monsoon on June 20, Himachal Pradesh has incurred losses totalling Rs 1,852 crore. Around 108 people have died in rain-related incidents while 36 are missing. Additionally, 1,491 power distribution transformers and 265 water supply schemes have been affected, the SEOC said.
It said 1,738 houses have been fully or partially damaged in the state, which has witnessed 55 flash floods, 28 cloudbursts and 48 major landslides so far.
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Gujarat voted for development & good governance, says Pradhan as BJP sweeps local body polls
New Delhi (PTI): Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday said the people of Gujarat have reaffirmed their faith in the politics of development, stability and good governance as the BJP swept the local body elections by winning all 15 municipal corporations and 33 out of 34 district panchayats in the state.
Thanking the voters, Pradhan said the result is a testament to the people's unwavering trust in the BJP, the relentless hard work of the party workers and the strength of the organisation under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leadership of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
“The people of Gujarat have once again made it clear that their trust remains firmly aligned with the politics of development, stability and good governance. I express my heartfelt gratitude to the people of Gujarat for the support received by the BJP in the local body elections,” Pradhan posted on X.
“Under the guidance of the Hon'ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leadership of Gujarat's Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, this result is a remarkable testament to the people's unwavering trust, the relentless hard work of the Gujarat BJP workers, and the strength of the organisation,” he added.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked the people of Gujarat for what he termed a "sweeping mandate" in the local body polls, saying the bond between the state and the BJP has grown even stronger.
Modi said people have voted for the politics of good governance, and assured that the party would work harder to take Gujarat to new heights of progress.
Though final results for 250 taluka panchayats and 84 municipalities were awaited, data from the State Election Commission (SEC) showed that the ruling BJP won most of these local bodies while some were bagged by the Congress, AAP and Independents.
Polling was held on Sunday for 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats.
The BJP emerged a clear winner in the municipal corporations of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar and Rajkot, besides the newly created municipal corporations of Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar.
