Orange alert issued for three Himachal districts; 266 roads closed

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Shimla, Aug 4 (PTI) As heavy rains continued to lash Himachal Pradesh on Monday, the meteorological department has issued an orange alert for heavy to very heavy precipitation at isolated places in three districts, namely Una, Bilaspur and Kangra the next day.
According to officials, 266 roads, including the Aut to Sainj National Highway 305, were closed for vehicular movement on Monday.
A landslide at Panthaghati in the suburbs of Shimla city obstructed traffic on Mehli-Shogi bypass on Sunday night, with debris blocking the road and stones damaging some shops nearby, residents said.
Since Sunday evening, Kasauli received 82 mm of rainfall, followed by Naina Devi (62.6 mm), Jogindernagar (60 mm), Brahmani (49.2 mm), Manali (45.2 mm), Shimla (36.8 mm), Guler (29 mm), Mandi (27.2 mm), Pandoh (27 mm), Karsog (26.2 mm) and Sarahan (25.5 mm), according to the Met office.
According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), out of the 266 roads closed on Monday, 155 are in Mandi district, which was recently battered by cloudbursts, landslides and flash floods. Sixty eight of the blocked roads are in Kullu district.
Since the onset of monsoon on June 20, the state has incurred losses totalling Rs 1,714 crore till date; around 106 people have died in rain-related incidents while 36 are missing.
Additionally, 41 power distribution transformers and 282 water supply schemes have been affected, the SEOC added.
In a statement, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said that nearly 95 water supply schemes affected by the recent rains and flash floods have been temporarily restored.
Out of the total of 10,067 water supply schemes, about 5,805 schemes were impacted, and the estimated damage to these stands at approximately Rs 434.47 crore, Agnihotri said, adding that 1,293 irrigation schemes were affected, with estimated losses pegged at Rs 101.67 crore.
He said that restoration of water supply and sewerage infrastructure remains a top priority for the state government and the departments concerned have been given necessary directions in this regard.
According to the SEOC, as many as 1,692 houses have been fully or partially damaged in the state, which has witnessed 54 flash floods, 28 cloudbursts and 48 major landslides so far. The fatalities include 20 drownings, 19 deaths from falls, 17 deaths from cloudbursts, eight from flash floods, and six from landslides. PTI BPL RUK RUK
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