Rain, Floods Havoc: Nine Killed in Himachal in Landslide, Three Services in Rescue Operations in Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 25: Nine tourists were perished when rolling boulders hit a bridge in Sangla valley in Himachal Pradesh while three Services joined hands with the civil administration and national as well as the State disaster management authorities in relief and rescue operations in flood-affected areas of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa.
A defence ministry spokesman on Sunday said, “Working in close coordination with the administrations of worst-hit Ratnagiri, Kolhapur and Sangli districts of Maharashtra, the Army has deployed task forces, comprising infantry, engineers, communication, recovery and medical teams in the affected areas.” The teams conducted rescue and relief operations and saved precious lives in Chiplun, Shirol, Hatkangle, Palus and Miraj areas.
In Karnataka, the Navy mobilised seven well-equipped flood relief teams along with Naval divers, rubber ‘Gemini’ boats, life jackets and medical equipment for relief operations. “The teams evacuated 165 people from Singudda and Bhaire villages near Kadra Dam, while 70 people were evacuated from low-lying areas of Kaiga,” the statement said.
Naval Seaking and Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters and Indian Air Force MI-17 helicopters conducted multiple sorties and rescued people marooned due to sudden and sharp rise in the water levels. They also conducted aerial survey of the affected areas to enable senior officials to assess the situation and plan rescue and relief operations.
Around 400 personnel of National Disaster Response Force were airlifted by IAF aircraft from Bhubaneshwar, Kolkata and Vadodara to Pune, Kolhapur and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra and Goa along with 40 tonnes of rescue equipment, according to the statement.
The teams of the three Services were working round the clock to rescue the locals affected by floods, besides providing them with food, water, medical assistance, the statement said adding, more rescue teams and aircraft were on standby for deployment.
The death toll in rain-related incidents in Maharashtra rose to 137 on Sunday with one more casualty reported in the last 24 hours while 100 were missing after monsoon wreaked havoc in the state. The toll may increase further as rescue teams are recovering more bodies, particularly from the landslide site at Mahad taluka in Raigad district.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray visited Chiplun to take stock of the situation at the site of severe flooding in Ratnagiri district of the Konkan region. Apart from Ratnagiri and Raigad districts, the areas which are badly hit by heavy torrential rains are Sindhudurg, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, Mumbai suburbs, Pune and Thane.
In Karnataka, at least nine people have died and three are missing owing to floods caused by incessant rain that has battered Karnataka since Thursday. While four people have died in Uttara Kannada, two are from Belagavi, and one each from Kodagu, Dharwad, and Chikkamagaluru districts, the state government confirmed.
In Himachal Pradesh, nine tourists were killed and several were injured after a massive landslide hit a bridge in Sangla valley on Sunday morning. In a terrifying video, large chunks of rocks can be seen breaking off a mountain and rolling down into the valley below. The video shows a section of the bridge crumbling and plunging into a river after a boulder hits it.
“All the 11 victims were tourists whose vehicle got hit by boulders,” said Saju Ram Rana, SP Kinnaur, adding the injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital. A team of doctors is at the spot, he said. The rocks can be seen hitting cars at the foot of the mountain, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
Chief Minister Jairam Thakur expressed sorrow over the loss of lives in the accident. “It is very sad that a vehicle carrying tourists came under its grip, in which nine died and two injured and one passerby got injured. May God grant peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved family,” he tweeted in Hindi.
The weather office recently had issued a landslide warning in Himachal Pradesh due to heavy rainfall predicted in the next few days. In the last few years, landslides have become a common occurrence in the hill state,
According to the Indian Meteorological Department’s (IMD) latest weather update, isolated parts of Goa, Karnataka, and Gujarat will receive heavy showers in the next 24 hours. Heavy rains are also expected in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
“A financial review of the flood damage in the state will be carried out in a couple of days but now the district collectors concerned have been directed to immediately provide food, medicine, clothes and other necessities to the flood victims,” Maharashtra CM’s office said.
The Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Narayan Rane visited the landslide-hit Taliye village in Raigad on Sunday morning along with Maharashtra opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis and Pravin Darekar.
“This is an unfortunate incident. So far 44 bodies have been found and I have taken stock of the rescue operation. The rescue teams are making all the efforts,” Rane said.
He said apart from the compensation announced by the Union and the state governments, the Centre would rehabilitate the victims under Prime Minister Awas Yojana. He further said, “I have been sent by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take stock of the situation here. Accordingly, I will send a report of the same and necessary help will be provided by the Centre.”
“The state and the Centre will together rebuild the village. We will be trying to provide whatever the families of the victims need. The only thing we will not be able to do is to bring back those who have lost their lives. But we will take good care of those who are alive.”
