# Shimla

Avoid travelling to Himachal due to continuous rains; orange alert declared

In the wake of the heavy rains in North India, Himachal Pradesh may witness landslides and landslips in the coming…

Statesman News Service | Chandigarh | July 8, 2023 9:17 pm

Avoid travelling to Himachal due to continuous rains; orange alert declared

In the wake of the heavy rains in North India, Himachal Pradesh may witness landslides and landslips in the coming days. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert of very heavy rain in Himachal Pradesh on July 8 and 9. An orange alert means that there is a weather forecast of weather worsening more and caution to be maintained. “Heavy rain may lead to riverine flooding in some catchment areas,” the IMD warned on Friday.

Farmers have been advised to drain out excess water from fields to avoid stagnation of water. The IMD advised people to avoid travelling to Himachal for a holiday in the next couple of days. Traffic disruptions due to landslides and waterlogging are expected, it said. Standing crops will be damaged due to inundation and fruit-bearing trees will also bear the brunt of the rains.

Also, avoid going to the hill stations particularly Shimla and Manali in the next couple of days given the orange alert. These tourist destinations have been affected by heavy landslides and landslips. The national highway beyond Shimla near Theog is still under repair.

Recently, the Mandi-Kullu national highway was closed for traffic movement with more than 200 people including tourists and locals stranded near Baggi Bridge on Mandi Prashar Road. The road near Pandoh and upto Kullu in patches is still not up to the mark and safe for travel.

Increased construction activity on the roadside for the past decade, road repair, and cutting of the adjacent hills to widen the already existing roads both on the Mandi-Manali road and Chandigarh-Shimla national highway has led to an increase in landslides all along the national highway.