A total of 452 roads under the purview of the Public Works Department (PWD) in the seven districts of Garhwal division have been closed due to landslides and mudslides caused by incessant rains but the department chief engineer is not in town.
Thousands of pilgrims are stranded and many more locals are left without road links. Apart from locals, the pilgrims of traveling to or from Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri and Hemkund are facing problems due to recurring closure of the roads.
Heavy rains have damaged the national highway from Rishikesh to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri in many places due to which the pilgrims stranded in these places are facing problems of food and other facility.
However, the Rudraprayag and Chamoli district administration have started rescue work along with the clearance of some roads on Tuesday. Apart from the national highway, many link roads in the seven districts are badly damaged.
According to information from Pauri office of the PWD chief engineer RP Bhatt, who is out of town, 452 roads are closed to traffic in Garhwal division. These roads include 90 in Pauri, 163 in Tehri, 32 in Rudraprayag, 58 in Chamoli, 52 in Uttarkashi, 12 in Haridwar and 45 in Dehradun district.