Heavy rain batters Himachal; 134 roads shut as IMD issues fresh orange alert

Torrential rain continued to batter Himachal Pradesh on Saturday, disrupting normal life across several districts as landslides and flash floods forced the closure of 134 roads and affected power and water supply, while the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued fresh warnings of heavy rainfall in the coming days.

The IMD has issued an orange alert for 28-30 July, forecasting heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places, while a yellow alert remains in force for 26 and 27 July.

The weather office also warned of a low to moderate risk of flash floods in parts of Chamba, Kangra, Kinnaur, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla and Sirmaur districts until Sunday morning, cautioning that saturated soil and low-lying areas remain vulnerable to inundation.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), the overall situation improved during the day after restoration work, though 134 roads, 78 electricity distribution transformers (DTRs) and 35 water supply schemes remained disrupted by Saturday evening.

Mandi remained the worst-hit district with 58 roads blocked, followed by Kullu (33), Chamba (14), Sirmaur (12), Shimla (7), Kangra (5), Lahaul and Spiti (4) and Una (1). No national highway was reported closed.

Power supply was hit hardest in Kullu, where 59 transformers remained non-functional. Shimla reported nine disrupted transformers, while Chamba and Kangra reported eight each and Mandi two.

Water supply continued to be disrupted across several districts, with Chamba reporting the highest number of affected schemes, followed by Kangra, Lahaul and Spiti, Sirmaur, Shimla, Bilaspur and Hamirpur.

The SEOC said restoration work continued through the day and noted that since the onset of the monsoon on 18 July, authorities had restored 1,329 blocked roads and resumed most disrupted utility services.

Heavy rain also lashed Shimla on Saturday evening, causing drains to overflow and waterlogging several roads, disrupting traffic at multiple locations.

The IMD has forecast light to moderate rainfall across most parts of Himachal Pradesh until 31 July, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds of 30-40 kmph, particularly over the low and mid-hill districts, as well as Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti.

Dharamshala recorded the highest rainfall in the state over the past 24 hours at 80.5 mm, followed by Palampur (62 mm), Berthin (50.7 mm), Pachhad (41.3 mm), Gohar (40 mm) and Mandi (39.8 mm).

Amid concerns over water contamination during the monsoon, the Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited advised residents to drink only filtered or boiled water, warning that increased turbidity in water sources could reduce the effectiveness of disinfection and allow harmful bacteria, viruses and parasites to survive.