New Delhi: Nearly 40 pilgrims travelling to Kailash and Mansarover were stuck in Uttarakhand after a portion of a hill collapsed on Saturday, September 24, 2022.
The pilgrims were stuck at the Tawaghat Lipulekh National Highway as a large portion of the hill fell on the road near the Najang Tamba village of Uttarakhand on Saturday.
The route of the Adi Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage travels via the Najang Tamba village. The village has been closed due to the blockage.
The blockage is seen as a result of heavy rains in the state. The heavy rains have been resulting in mishaps such as landslide and debris accumulation on the highway and portions of hills falling on the roads since the last few days.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) shared a rainfall distribution map on Twitter and issued an orange alert warning for the entire state of Uttarakhand on Friday, September 14.
RK Jenamani, senior scientist, IMD said, “Orange alert for very heavy rainfall issued for Uttarakhand from September 23 to September 25, 2022. Rain is expected to increase over western UP tomorrow.”
IMD had further predicted, “Isolated heavy falls and thunderstorm/lightning very likely over Uttarakhand during September 23- September 26, 2022.”
A popular pilgrimage for Hindu devotees, the Adi Kailash is situated in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. The district lies close to the Indo-Tibetan border.
On Friday, several state highways including National Highway (NH) 109 at Rudraprayag remained blocked due sudden landslides from a hill near Tarsali village in Rudraprayag. The landslide was triggered by heavy rainfall and led to accumulation of debris on the national highway.
However, no casualties were reported as the pilgrims were stopped on time. The pilgrims going to Kedarnath were stopped at Rudraprayag, Tilwara, Agastyamuni, and Guptkashi. The pilgrims returning from Sonprayag were also stopped at safe places at Sonprayag, Sitapur, etc.
(Avya Mathur)