J-K floods: Over 130 dead, thousands rescued amid widespread devastation

More than 130 people have lost their lives and 33 remain missing across Kishtwar, Kathua, Reasi, and Ramban districts of Jammu and Kashmir following a series of cloudbursts, landslides, and flash floods since 14 August.

Over 5,000 civilians and 300 paramilitary personnel have been rescued so far in coordinated operations led by the Army, Air Force, and local authorities. The disaster has caused severe damage to public infrastructure, disrupted essential services, and isolated several villages.

Heavy rainfall between 26 and 27 August triggered major flooding in low-lying areas of Jammu, washing away roads, damaging bridges, and causing massive landslides. The Jammu–Srinagar National Highway (NH‑44) has remained blocked for five consecutive days, stranding more than 2,000 vehicles and leading to critical shortages of fuel, LPG, and medical supplies. Emergency teams have air-dropped over 21 tonnes of relief material, including food, water, and medicines, to cut-off areas.

In Reasi district, the Salal dam gates were opened to manage dangerously high water levels in the Chenab river, while army engineers built a bailey bridge at Jammu Tawi on 29 August within 12 hours to restore a key transport link. Communication services were also re-established after over 2 km of optical fibre cable was laid by military teams on 27 August.

Union home minister Amit Shah arrived in Jammu on 31 August to review the situation. On 1 September, he visited Vikram Chowk and the Tawi Bridge, inspecting flood damage along the riverbanks. He was accompanied by lieutenant-governor Manoj Sinha and chief minister Omar Abdullah.

The home minister is also expected to visit Manguchak, one of the worst-affected villages, and undertake an aerial survey of flood-hit areas later in the day. Before returning to New Delhi in the evening, Shah is scheduled to chair two high-level meetings at Raj Bhawan on flood relief and border security impacts.

Extreme weather warnings

Meanwhile, weather conditions remain volatile. The IMD (India Meteorological Department) has warned of extreme rainfall over the next several days as two converging weather systems intensify across the Himalayan belt. While Uttarakhand has been placed on red alert, Jammu and Kashmir remains highly vulnerable to further landslides and flash flooding.

Central agencies have stepped up their response. The ministry of home affairs has formed inter-ministerial teams to assess flood damage and coordinate relief efforts across the worst-affected states, including Jammu and Kashmir.

In a longer-term move, the National Disaster Management Authority and J&K State Disaster Management Authority, with support from ISRO, have initiated satellite mapping of glacial lakes and other vulnerable zones to study the causes of repeated cloudbursts and to inform flood mitigation planning.

With PTI inputs