Seven killed as boulders hit Sikh shrine in Himachal
20 Aug 2015 5:17 AM IST
“Seven people were killed and nine injured in the landslide. Part of the residential area in the shrine is badly damaged,” Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kanwar said.
A mound of boulders and debris from the hill atop the eight-storeyed residential complex got dislodged due to the recent heavy rain and struck it around 2 p.m. Rescue personnel from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), police and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were involved in the relief and rescue operation.
SSB official Sandeep Yadav told reporters that a huge boulder hit the building, badly damaging 3-4 rooms in four floors. A majority of the debris fell into the Parvati river, flowing near the building.
He said the entire area has been vacated as there were chances of more landslides. Rescue worker Pankaj Goswami said there was a <g data-gr-id="54">stampede-like</g> condition at the time of the incident.
He said there were no details about the number of people staying in the residential complex at the time of the landslide. “At present, a search is on to locate the people, if any, buried under the mound of debris,” he added.
Official sources said the sanctum sanctorum and the Hindu temple located in its vicinity were safe. The Manikaran shrine, located in the Parvati Valley along the banks of the Parvati river, is some 50 km from the Kullu district headquarters and 250 from state capital Shimla.
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