Heavy snowfall, rain hit normal life in Himachal Pradesh

Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 3

Heavy snowfall and rain at several places since Saturday, mainly in the tribal areas of the state, have thrown life out of gear. A few places in the districts of Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti and Shimla have recorded snowfall between two and four feet, leaving many of these places cut off from the rest of the state and in darkness. Overall, 652 roads, including five national highways, are blocked and 1,749 distribution transformers are out of order. As many as 78 water schemes have also been hit.

Chitkul (Kinnaur), Atal Tunnel (Kullu) and Gulaba (Kullu) have recorded four feet snow as per the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA). In Shimla district, over two feet snowfall has been recorded at Khadrala, and around one feet snow has been recorded at Narkanda. While Shimla received good rainfall throughout the day, Kufri, the nearby tourist spot, received a sprinkling of snow. Meanwhile, the districts of Una, Solan, Sirmaur, Shimla and Kangra have received widespread rainfall.

The heavy precipitation has resulted in avalanches in the district of Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur and no loss of life has been reported in these incidents. As many as five avalanches have been reported from Lahaul and Spiti. In one of the avalanches near Tandi Bridge in subdivision Lahaul, some shops were partially damaged. One avalanche incident happened near Karcham helipad in Kinnaur, which led to the blockage of NH-5. Also, three to four houses have been partially damaged due to heavy snow, rain and lightning.

The district of Lahaul and Spiti is the worst affected, with 290 roads blocked. In Shimla district, 149 roads are obstructed while in the districts of Chamba and Kinnaur, 100 and 75 roads are obstructed.

As per the Weather Department, the intensity and distribution of the precipitation is likely to reduce from tomorrow onwards. There’s a forecast for rain and snow at isolated places in mid and high hills. A fresh Western Disturbance likely to affect Western Himalayan Region from the night of March 5.

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