Several Labourers Trapped Due To Snowfall, Sliding Of Rocks In Himachal Pradesh

Over two dozen labourers engaged in erecting BSNL towers and construction of an Army post got stranded near Lal Dhak in Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur district on Thursday due to snowfall and sliding of rocks, officials said.

The work of erecting the BSNL towers was in progress at Nagdum and Dharnithal, while the Army post was under construction at Nagdum.

The labourers had started returning as heavy snowfall begun in the area and cold conditions aggravated. However, they got trapped as a road their return route was blocked due to sliding of a huge rock at Dumti, nearly 25 km from Chitkul.

"The labourers were returning as the work stopped due to heavy snowfall and severe cold conditions but the road at Dumti was blocked due to sliding of huge rocks," said Gobind Ram, accountant of the contractor Norbu Chhorian.

The district administration has informed that after receiving information about the labourers getting stranded, heavy machinery has been rushed to the spot and the road would be opened once the snowfall stops, Ram said.

Meanwhile, the meteorological office here on Thursday warned of moderate flash flood risk in parts of Shimla, Kinnaur, and Sirmaur districts until Friday.

It also issued a yellow alert of heavy rains, thunderstorms and lightning at isolated places in five out of 12 districts of the state for Thursday and Friday.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), heavy rains could lash parts of Kinnaur, Mandi, Sirmaur, Solan and Shimla districts. It also cautioned of the possibility of damage to plantations, crops, vulnerable structures and kutcha houses.

Light rains continued in some parts of the state on Thursday, with Dharamhala recording the maximum rainfall at 41 mm since Wednesday evening, followed by Dhaulakuan 26 mm, Kalpa 19.3 mm, Jot 7.6 mm, Dalhousie 7mm, Kahu 6.8 mm, Chopal 6.2 mm, Manali and Wangtoo 5 mm each.

A total of 34 roads were closed and 24 power schemes were disrupted in the state as of Wednesday, according to the latest update from the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).

A maximum of 13 roads were closed in Shimla, 10 in Kangra, eight in Mandi, three in Kullu and one in Sirmaur district, SEOC said.

Since the monsoon onset in Himachal Pradesh on June 27, the state's rainfall deficit till date stands at 21 per cent, with the state receiving 539.1 mm rainfall against an average of 678.4 mm.

According to officials, 165 people so far died in rain-related incidents during the monsoon onset from June 27, while 30 are still missing.

The state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1,323 crore, they said.

On Thursday, Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti was the coldest place in the state with a low of 6.7 degrees Celsius, while Kangra was the hottest with a maximum temperature of 34.6 degrees.

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