Uttarakhand: Landslide Debris Blocks Badrinath Highway, Damages Vehicles

Landslide debris has blocked Uttarakhand's Rishikesh-Badrinath highway and has damaged dozens of vehicles in Sirobagad. The link road of Khankhra-Khedakhal-Khirsu has also been blocked due to landslides.

The landslides were triggered due to incessant rains in the area from the past 4 days, disrupting the lives of the local residents. Due to the blockage of the highway and the link road, the Rudraprayag and Chamoli districts are not able to receive even essential commodities.

Ever since the work of All Weather Road on the Rishikesh-Badrinath Highway, the danger of landslides has increased multifold; the area receives landslides even during light rain.

The highway is being cleared but will take several hours to complete.

Pradeep Malasi, the former head of the Khankhra area of Rudraprayag, said, "The local administration and the common man have been noticing that the condition of the roads is deteriorating with the day along with the lives of the locals. We have been witnessing episodes of rain ever since May 3. Recently, there was a cloudburst here at Fatehpur village, and the debris because of it entered several houses."

Meanwhile, a car with two passengers fell into a drain in the Kargi area of Dehradun on Thursday night following heavy rainfall in the city.

Earlier today, an earthquake of magnitude 4.6 on the Richter scale hit Joshimath.