Monsoon hits Himachal

Shimla: Heavy rains lashed many parts of Himachal Pradesh as Southwest Monsoon hit the state on Saturday, triggering landslides, blocking roads, damaging vehicles, disrupting water supply and leading to cancellation of trains on the Shimla-Kalka narrow gauge section. All the seven trains were cancelled as the Kalka-Shimla heritage line was obstructed at several places between Kaithlighat and Dharampur due to landslides following heavy rains, station master Joginder Singh said, adding that the track would be restored by late evening. About 300 goats perished and more than 50 sustained injuries in an avalanche in the higher reaches of Chamba district. Gushing waters swept debris and stones in Shimla town damaging house and some vehicles parked on the roadside. Officials from the Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited said drinking water supply will be hit for the next few days in the city.

Several parts of the state received moderate to very heavy rain from Friday, with MeT officials saying heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely to occur in Sirmaur, Solan, Shimla, Bilaspur, Una, Hamirpur, Mandi and Kangra districts over the next few days. The Met Office has issued “orange” warning indicating heavy to very heavy rain, thunderstorm, and lightning at isolated places on June 25 and 26 and “yellow” warning indicating thunderstorm and lightning on June 27 and 28. A house was completely damaged in the Krishna Nagar area in the heart of Shimla. The incident occurred on Saturday. However, no casualty was reported, officials said.