Heavy rain and resulting flood in the local mountain stream on Saturday night buried homes of many residents of Pasar village in Narendranagar block of Tehri district. The villagers were able to escape death but are now distraught due to their farmlands being destroyed leaving them without their sole means of livelihood.
As clouds thundered late on Saturday night the mountain stream at Pasar which was earlier on the verge of drying up was flooded with the powerful surge carrying boulders and trees along in a manner which sparked terror among villagers who glimpsed the massive forces of nature at work.
While the alarmed villagers started to run towards safer locations, the irrigated lands of dozens of villagers, standing crops, drinking water lines, canals and bridle paths were destroyed within a matter of a few minutes. Aged about 55-years, villager Bachni Devi, whose home is buried by debris, recalls that the current of the flood water would have swept her away but she somehow managed to survive.
However, like other villagers, she has now lost her sole source of livelihood which is fuelling anxiety. On Sunday, former MlA Omgopal Rawat, district Panchayat member Anil Bhandari and others visited the disaster affected area and demanded that the disaster affected be provided relief without delay.
There are also reports of dozens of villagers losing farmlands due to heavy rain at Manjiyadi in Dogi Patti which also damaged canals. With water lines being damaged and natural sources of water being destroyed, the locals may face drinking water and other problems if the authorities fail to provide necessary relief within a couple of days, fear the villagers.