Cloudburst In Himachal's Kinnaur Leaves Hundreds Of Kailash Pilgrims Stranded; Rescue Ops Underway
Bridges over Tanglipi and Kangrang streams have been washed away, complicating evacuation efforts. A second cloudburst near Ribba village at Raldang Khad has completely obstructed National Highway-5, where massive boulders and mud have blocked access. Fortunately, no fatalities have been reported so far.
Across the state, relentless rainfall and cloudbursts have led to widespread destruction, with over 500 roads blocked due to landslides. Emergency teams are working around the clock to ensure the safety of residents and pilgrims caught in the chaos.
Meanwhile, in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, a catastrophic cloudburst hit Dharali village on Tuesday afternoon. Within just 34 seconds, Khir Ganga village was completely submerged in debris and water. Four fatalities have been confirmed, and over 50 people, including 11 army personnel, remain missing.
Dharali, located 18 km from Gangotri, saw hotels and shops buried under rubble. Social media is flooded with videos showing the powerful torrent destroying the village. Rescue operations involving the SDRF, NDRF, and army are ongoing. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is monitoring the crisis and coordinating relief efforts.
Both incidents underscore the growing severity of monsoon-related disasters in the Himalayan region. Authorities continue to urge caution and preparedness as heavy rainfall is forecast to persist.
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India Today
8 minutes ago
- India Today
Dharali cloudburst: Why Uttarakhand faces nature's fury so frequently
Every monsoon, Uttarakhand braces itself for the worst from nature, and almost every year, the hill state nestled in the Himalayas falters under the weight of yet another natural disaster. The August 5 cloudburst and resulting flash floods and landslides that wrecked Dharali village near Gangotri is a fresh wake-up call for a state serially bearing the brunt of calamities—cloudbursts, flash floods, landslides, avalanches and land subsidence—for over two decades some of these grim tragedies. The 2013 Kedarnath floods, caused by a Himalayan glacial lake bursting above the revered Hindu shrine, killed over 6,000 people. More recently, in 2021, an avalanche in Chamoli damaged a key hydropower project while flash floods in Uttarkashi swept away several villages. The monsoon season in 2023 caused nearly 100 landslide-related deaths. Earlier that year, Joshimath reported major land subsidence. And last year, the state recorded over 1,800 landslides during August 5 cloudburst in Uttarkashi triggered flash floods and massive landslides, sending within minutes scores of homes, shops, hotels and properties into the Dhauli Ganga river. At least five people are dead and 100 missing. Dharali, the epicentre of the damage, lies in the Bhagirathi Eco-Sensitive Zone. Experts say constructions on river floodplains and other unchecked activities may have worsened the impact of the are not one-off events but pointers to a deeper and long-ignored crisis. Uttarakhand's geography and how that is being managed make the state particularly vulnerable. The question no longer is whether disasters will happen but why they are striking so often, and with such force. According to the 2023 Landslide Atlas of India, prepared by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), India is the fourth most vulnerable in the world to landslide risk, with more than one death per 100 sq km reported each landslides in India happen during the monsoon months, from June to September. The country alone accounts for 16 per cent of all rainfall-related landslides globally. These are caused by natural triggers, such as heavy rain, weakening of rocks and earthquakes, yet increasingly as much by anthropogenic activities such as construction and happen in various forms, such as debris flow, rock-falls and slides, and can be caused by rain, erosion from floods, earthquakes, snowmelt or human activity such as overgrazing, cutting of trees and unplanned development. In Uttarakhand, the conditions seem fertile for such 2023 Landslide Atlas includes a landslide exposure analysis for 147 districts across 17 states and two Union territories in India's mountainous regions, based on key socioeconomic parameters. Rudraprayag district in Uttarakhand, which has the highest landslide density in the country, also ranks the highest in terms of exposure to population and number of houses. Tehri Garhwal is ranked second. Other Uttarakhand districts in the top 25 include Chamoli (19th), Uttarkashi (21st) and Pauri Garhwal (23rd).Charu C. Pant, retired professor of geology and former dean in the faculty of science at Kumaun University, Nainital, explains that the Great Himalayan Granite stone plays a key role in the geological instability of the region, particularly in the Main Central Thrust zone, which is one of the most active and critical fault lines in the includes both the Lesser and Greater Himalayas, and the zone where the two meet is known as the Main Central Thrust. 'This zone, spread across northern India till Arunachal Pradesh, is very fragile,' informs granite body, emplaced deep in the earth's crust around 20-25 million years ago, is part of the Greater Himalayan Sequence, considered a key tectonic unit of the Himalayas and sitting right above the Main Central Thrust. As the Indian plate continues to push into the Eurasian plate at the rate of 55 mm per year, the granite mass acts like a hard, brittle block lodged between two tectonic to experts, pressure and heat generated along this fault line cause intense deformation in the surrounding rocks. But granite itself is relatively rigid and does not absorb stress easily. Instead, the energy is transferred to the adjacent rocks, which are already fractured from earlier tectonic activity. These rocks gradually become crushed, sheared and a result, the presence of this hard granite in a tectonically active zone acts like a wedge that grinds and weakens the rocks around it. Over time, this has created a deeply fractured and unstable zone along the Main Central Thrust, making it prone to landslides, rock-falls and rapid erosion, especially during heavy rainfall or seismic activity, say reason behind these natural disasters is that the valleys from which our rivers flow are very narrow. The water-bearing clouds formed over these valleys are trapped between tall and steep mountains and start to precipitate, often resulting in cloudbursts. That causes landslides and heavy water, along with mud, stones and more, reaching the lower areas as furiously flowing debris. These debris flows have a higher erosive power because of the solid elements they carry,' says says the western disturbances—weather systems originating over the Mediterranean Sea and travelling eastward across Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan before reaching northern India—can make things worse. 'The disturbances bring moisture that often causes winter rain and snow in the Himalayan region. When combined with the monsoon, the intensity of the rainfall increases,' he adds that while these phenomena are not new, what complicates the scene is the unprecedented construction in the Himalayan region, including on riverbeds, and rising population and human activity. For instance, at least 12 big or small hydel projects for Uttarakhand are currently in different phases of planning or approval. Similarly, the Rs 12,000 crore Char Dham Highway project, essentially about 900 km of road-widening, has been mired in controversy since being sanctioned in 2016 owing to this growing pressure, natural calamities are taking a far heavier toll than before. As Dharali in Uttarkashi counts its dead and prays for those missing, Pant underlines that governmental intervention must go beyond relief and rehabilitation for singular tragedies. The need, he says, is to create a stringent policy of keeping the riverbeds free of construction and implementing the recommendations of environmental assessments for development projects sans any pressure. In short, redoing the rulebook and sticking to to India Today Magazine- EndsMust Watch
News18
28 minutes ago
- News18
Uttarkashi Flash Foods: 30 Maharashtra Tourists Untraceable, Rescue Op Continues For 2nd Day
Last Updated: CM Dhami sanctioned Rs 1.3 lakh each from the State Disaster Relief Fund to 15 families in Sainji village whose houses were completely destroyed Uttarkashi Flash Foods: Rescue operations continued on Thursday in the high-altitude villages of Dharali in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district after a cloudburst led to flash floods. At least five people were killed, and nearly two hundred people have been rescued so far. A cloudburst in the Kheer Ganga river's catchment area triggered devastating floods, damaging or washing away several houses on August 6. Here's Latest Updates On Uttarkashi Flash Floods Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held review meetings at the Disaster Control Room, assessing ongoing rescue and relief operations in the affected regions. He also met people in affected areas. CM Dhami sanctioned Rs 1.3 lakh each from the State Disaster Relief Fund to 15 families in Sainji village whose houses were completely destroyed. While five bodies have been recovered so far, the CM confirmed that 274 people have been rescued. Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan said it is likely that some people are stranded in Gangotri. He added that the rescue operations will continue. Maharashtra Minister Yogesh Ramdas Kadam said 151 tourists from the state are stranded, out of which 30–31 are currently unreachable. Efforts are ongoing to trace and relocate them safely, he added. Chinook and Mi-17 helicopters are being used to airlift stranded civilians. Around 180–200 tourists in Gangotri are receiving food, shelter, and medical aid from the armed forces. Teams from SDRF, NDRF, ITBP, and Indian Army personnel are on the ground conducting large-scale rescue operations in Dharali, Harsil, and other remote areas. Roads in the region, including the Ganganani-Harsil road, have been heavily damaged due to landslides triggered by a cloudburst. The Gangotri Highway near Papargad has been restored, and work is progressing swiftly near Ganganani, where a bridge was washed away. Here's 4-Day Weather Forecast For Uttarakhand August 8: Heavy rain is likely to occur at isolated places in the districts of Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Dehradun, Pauri, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh, Udham Singh Nagar, Champawat, and Nainital. Thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and very intense spells of rain are also expected at some locations across all districts of Uttarakhand. August 9: Several districts, including Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh, Dehradun, and Nainital are likely to experience heavy rain at isolated places. Thunderstorm activity with lightning and intense to very intense rain is expected at scattered locations throughout the state. August 10: Bageshwar district is likely to witness heavy to very heavy rain in isolated areas. Heavy rainfall may also affect Dehradun, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, and Champawat districts. Thunderstorms with lightning and intense rain are likely across all districts at certain spots. August 11: Heavy to very heavy rain is expected in Bageshwar district. Dehradun and Nainital may also receive heavy rainfall in isolated areas. Thunderstorms with lightning and very intense rain are likely to occur at some locations across the entire state. tags : Uttarakhand view comments Location : Dehradun, India, India First Published: August 07, 2025, 21:59 IST News india Uttarkashi Flash Foods: 30 Maharashtra Tourists Untraceable, Rescue Op Continues For 2nd Day Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
United News of India
31 minutes ago
- United News of India
Uttarkashi floods not due to glacial burst, says space tech firm
Chennai, Aug 7 (UNI) Suhora Technologies, an Earth observation and space data analytics company today categorically said the flash flood in the Uttarkashi region of Uttarakhand is not due to any glacial burst. Ruling out the theory of glacial burst, Suhora Technologies took help of satellite images and data analytics and said the flood is due to a cloud burst. Suhora Technologies examined data from the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) and also its own comprehensive glacial lake inventory along with cross-checking through high-resolution optical imagery to verify that there are no glacial lakes present upstream of Dharali village, thereby ruling out a glacial burst as the cause of the flash floods. The company conducted the analysis using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and high-resolution optical imagery to identify the disaster-hit zones resulting from this catastrophic event. According to the company, it had acquired Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery at 11:01 PM on August 5 through its platform, SPADE, which delivered the image in near real-time, enabling timely and accurate analysis of the disaster. As per the analysis Suhora Technologies said approximately 16 hectares of area have been affected, impacting nearly 148 buildings and resulting in widespread disruption to housing, schools, and public infrastructure. In addition, one bridge has been damaged, and about 0.95 km of road has been affected, leading to significant road closures and interruptions in connectivity. 'This incident is a stark reminder of the increasing vulnerability of Himalayan regions to climate-induced natural hazards, emphasizing the need for proactive policy, planning, and community resilience strategies," said Krishanu Acharya, CEO, Suhora Technologies. "Space data analytics can play a critical role in disaster management and can provide actionable insights to government agencies, policymakers and companies, thereby enhancing their ability to respond effectively and build greater resilience against future disasters,' said Acharya. UNI VJ ARN PRS
