The Met issued an orange warning of heavy rains on July 11.
Himachal weather update: There was no let-up in the monsoon fury in Himachal Pradesh on Monday with flash floods and landslides claiming 18 lives over the past two days, affecting most hydropower projects and destroying property worth hundreds of crores of rupees.
Officials said over 300 tourists and local people are stranded in Chandertal, Pagal Nallah and other places in Lahaul and Spiti, while teams of National Disaster Response Force, police and home guard rescued 515 labourers from waterlogged slum areas at Lalsingi in Una district. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said efforts are on to rescue the 300 stranded people, and they could be airlifted as the weather clears. Power and water supply has been snapped in several areas.
Chief Minister Sukhu said an assessment of loss is underway and it is estimated to be in the range of Rs 3,000-Rs. 4000 crore, according to a government statement. A preliminary estimate by the State Emergency Operation Centre, however, pegged the loss at Rs 785 crore. It reported 18 rain-related deaths since Sunday morning. Officials said around 800 roads are still closed in the state.
READ | Delhi rains: Govt's primary and MCD schools to remain closed on Tuesday due to heavy rainfall
According to transport department officials bus services on 1,255 routes of the Himachal Roadways Transport Corporation (HRTC) have been suspended and 576 buses are stranded at different places on route.
The Chandigarh-Manali National Highway is blocked due to landslides and flooding at multiple places. The Shimla-Kinnaur Road is also closed for vehicular traffic due to slides and falling of rocks.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the CM and inquired about the extent of the damages and assured all possible assistance. The CM stressed on the need to declare the situation as a national calamity and sought special economic package to aid in the state as the recovery process is estimated to take a long time, a statement issued here said.
On Monday morning, the meteorological department issued a "red" alert for "extremely heavy rains (above 204 mm) in eight out of 12 districts of the state. The Met also issued an orange warning of heavy rains on July 11. Officials said rail operations on the Shimla-Kalka route, a UNESCO world heritage site, have been suspended till Tuesday as landslides blocked the track at multiple places while educational institutions across the state were ordered to remain shut on Monday and Tuesday.
The Kullu administration has also announced a two days public holiday in the district on July 10 and 11. The state government has cancelled the leave of all field officers and asked them to report for duty immediately.
(With inputs from PTI)
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 "Himachal rains: Monsoon fury unabated in state, toll reaches 18; orange alert issued for July 11")
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