Heavy rains disrupt Himachal, 118 roads closed

Torrential rains in Himachal Pradesh have led to the closure of 118 roads across the state, as the local meteorological office issued an orange alert for heavy to very heavy rains at isolated places in five districts on Monday and Tuesday.

Moderate to heavy rains lashed parts of Kangra district since Saturday evening. Dharamshala recorded 96.2 mm of rainfall, followed by Palampur at 55 mm and Kangra at 34.6 mm.

According to the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC), 48 roads were closed in Mandi, 32 in Kullu, 11 in Chamba, eight in Sirmaur, seven in Shimla, six in Kangra, four in Una and two in Lahaul and Spiti.

As many as 216 water supply schemes and 19 power transformers have also been disrupted due to the rains, officials said.

Since the onset of the monsoon on June 30, 79 people have died in rain-related incidents in the state, including 14 in landslides and one in a flash flood, while the state has suffered losses estimated at Rs 972 crore, they said.