Heavy Rains Wreak Havoc Across North India, Himachal Pradesh Most Affected

Video Producer: Vishnu Gopinath
Video Editor: Abhishek Sharma 

Torrential rainfall continued to lash several states in north India on Monday, 10 July, including Punjab, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Delhi-NCR as well as certain parts of Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Rivers have swelled, low-lying areas are waterlogged, traffic has been disrupted, and houses were inundated due to the copious amounts of rain in parts of the country. Here's an overview of the situation in each region.

Himachal Pradesh

In the past 36 hours, Himachal Pradesh has witnessed 13 landslides and nine flash floods due to extreme rainfall in the region. As a result, the devastation claimed the lives of nine people in the state on Sunday, 9 July.

A house collapsed in Shimla's Kotgarh area, which led to the deaths of three family members. Another person died after a makeshift house was damaged by a landslide in Kullu town, according to The Indian Express.

A landslide in Chamba left a fifth person dead while three more deaths occurred after a vehicle was swept away by a landslide in Tehri Garhwal district. A girl was reportedly buried by debris that washed over her house on the outskirts of Shimla.

Several people are also reportedly missing even as search and rescue operations are underway.

In light of the heavy rains, over 736 roads have reportedly been closed for traffic. Trains between Shimla and Kalka track have also been cancelled by the authorities, the report said.

"I appeal to everyone not to go nearby any rivers or water bodies because there is a chance of further heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours...everyone must be cautious and we have instructed the administration as well to take all the precautions and alert the people," tweeted Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.

“We have shared our forecast with the state government and a warning has also been issued for flash floods, landslides, and uprooting of trees. These events might also hit water and electricity supply,” IMD HP deputy director Bui Lal was quoted as saying by ANI.

Chamba, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Una, Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts are under 'red' alert whereas an 'orange' alert has been issued in Shimla, Solan and Sirmaur districts by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Flash floods were reported from Himachal Pradesh's Lahaul and Spiti on Monday, 10 July, leaving over 200 people stranded. Devastating visuals of shops and vehicles being swept away in the flash floods went viral on social media.

Punjab

Several parts of Punjab were battered by heavy rains for the second consecutive day, according to a report by The Tribune. The affected regions in the state include Mohali, Rupnagar, Patiala, and Fatehgarh Sahib.

The incessant showers led to waterlogging in low-lying areas, thus disrupting the traffic and flooding hundreds of houses on Sunday. The fencing along the Indo-Pak border in Ferozepur district has also been damaged from the extreme rainfall, the report said.

Deputy Commissioner Dr Preeti Yadav issued a high alert in the Ropar district, where train services have been suspended.

Over 22 people, including five women and four children, have been safely evacuated using a special boat after they were stranded in paddy fields near Machhiwara in Ludhiana, as per the report.

While the water level of the Ghaggar River has risen dangerously due to the rainfall, Surabhi district residents have been warned against venturing out of their homes.

Heavy rains are expected to further lash Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Mansa, Muktsar, Patiala, Sangrur, and Tarn Taran, The Tribune reported.

Chandigarh

Chandigarh received a record 325.5 mm level of rainfall between Saturday and Sunday morning, according to a report by Hindustan Times. It was reportedly the wettest day in the state's history as streets became waterlogged, trees were uprooted, and vehicles suffered damage.

The downpour also led to several houses in Hallo Majra, Ramdarbar, and Dhanas villages being flooded. Traffic jams were reported across the city after underpasses at Sector 11/15 dividing road, Phase-1 Industrial Area, Phase-2 Industrial Area were submerged, according to the report.

"The complaints of waterlogging have been pouring in from all parts of the city. We are constantly trying to attend to the problems and get them sorted. We have created a group on social media with members of the police and civic body to identify all points of waterlogging and react immediately," Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Commissioner Anindita Mitra was quoted as saying.

“While the monsoon system is also active, there is a strong western disturbance (WD) which primarily led to the rain on Saturday. The confluence of the two systems led to this heavy spell of rain,” IMD Chandigarh director AK Singh told Hindustan Times.

An 'orange alert' has been issued for the union territory as the weather is expected to be rainy on Monday, 10 July.

Delhi-NCR

Delhi has recorded 153 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours, making it the highest amount of rain that the national capital has received in decades.

As a result, several areas in Delhi such as Lajpat Nagar-1, Som Bazar, Najafgarh, Mayur Vihar Phase-3, Okhla Marg, and Model Town are flooded, according to The Indian Express.

Complaints about waterlogging in Rohtak Road-Bawana, Milothi, Burari, Mayur Vihar Extension, Dwarka Mor, Najafgarh, Model Town, and Hakikat Nagar have been filed, according to the Public Works Department (PWD), even as civic agencies attempted to clear the accumulated water.

The downpour has forced schools in Delhi, Gurugram and Faridabad to remain shut on Monday. Employees at corporations in Gurugram have also been asked to work from home for the time being.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that floods are unlikely in Delhi, but the state government is taking all possible precautions.

"The unprecedented rain caused problems to people and Delhi's system was not able to withstand it. Every year after rainfall, some vulnerable areas are waterlogged and the water is drained out in a couple of hours. But the 153 mm of rainfall was unprecedented and an event which happened in nearly 40 years," Kejriwal said while addressing a press conference on Monday.

"We are in touch with Central Water Commission in view of rising Yamuna water levels. Predictions indicate flood situations won't arise," he added.

However, at around 8 pm on Monday, the water level in the Yamuna breached the danger mark at the Old Railway Bride, flowing at 205.76 metres.

Meanwhile, Delhi's weather department has issued a 'yellow' alert, with moderate rainfall expected in parts of southwest Delhi and Gurgaon, the report said.

A flood warning was also issued by the Flood and Irrigation Department after Haryana released more than one lakh cusecs of water into the Yamuna river, whose water level is rising dangerously.

"Delhi government is on high alert. As soon as the Yamuna river crosses 206 meters of water level, we will begin evacuations along the bank of the river," Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj had told ANI earlier in the day.

Around 37,000 people live in areas near the Yamuna river, news agency PTI reported.

Uttarakhand

A jeep carrying 11 people was swept away in a landslide on the Rishikesh-Badrinath National Highway, PTI reported on Monday, 10 July. While three of the passengers in the jeep died, five people were rescued by the State Disaster Response Force and police officials. The search for the jeep's remaining three passengers is ongoing.

Two houses in Uttarakhand's Kashipur area came down, killing a couple and leaving their granddaughter wounded. A policeman on duty was also killed by a boulder that came rolling down a hill on the Yamunotri National Highway in Uttarakhand's Barkot district.

Jammu and Kashmir

Two people died after a passenger bus was hit by a landslide in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Another death was reported from Ladakh's Kargil district after a boulder hurtled down and crushed a vehicle on the Leh-Srinagar national highway.

The flash floods in Poonch district also claimed the lives of two soldiers on Saturday, PTI reported.

Uttar Pradesh

Reports indicated that Uttar Pradesh also received intense rainfall. On Sunday, tragedy struck as a 10-year-old girl lost her life when a tree branch fell on the tin shed of her house in Kaushambi during the rains, according to a PTI report.

Similarly, in Muzaffarnagar, a woman and her six-year-old daughter met a tragic fate when the roof of their house collapsed under the weight of heavy rainfall.

The previous day, on Saturday, two individuals lost their lives and three others sustained injuries in separate incidents of lightning strikes in Ballia.

(With inputs from The Indian Express, The Tribune, Hindustan Times, PTI, and ANI.)