Lightning kills 4 in Rajasthan, hundreds stranded in Himachal as monsoon advances

New Delhi/Shimla/Jaipur: At least four people were killed in lightning strikes in Rajasthan on Monday and hundreds were stranded in Himachal Pradesh as flash floods triggered by monsoon rains lashed large parts of north and west India. Landslides occurred and roads were blocked at some places. , The India Meteorological Department said the Southwest Monsoon advanced into North Arabian Sea, some more parts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab and remaining parts of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.

The weather in Delhi remained pleasant with 2 mm of rain in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am. The weather office has predicted a generally cloudy day with light to moderate rain and maximum temperature is likely to settle up to 30 degrees Celsius. In Rajasthan, four people were killed and several others injured in lightning incidents in parts of the state due to the first monsoon rains.

Dinesh (21) was killed by lightning in Pali district on Sunday evening, while two cousins ​​- Hariram (46) and Kamal (32) – were killed by lightning in Baran’s Patpadi. A 10-year-old girl died in Chittorgarh. Meanwhile, hundreds of passengers, including tourists, were stranded after the Chandigarh-Manali National Highway was blocked due to floods and landslides in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district, officials said on Monday.

A total of 301 roads are closed in the state after heavy rains, while 140 power transformers have been disrupted. Due to heavy rains, there was a flash flood at Khotinalla on the Pandoh-Kullu road near Aut, about 40 km from Mandi town, and passengers were left stranded since Sunday evening. Mandi administration officials said that the alternate Mandi-Kullu route via Katola, which was blocked due to landslides, has been opened after about 20 hours and small vehicles are now being sent through this route.

The Mandi-Pandoh road was blocked near mile 6 after the landslide. Officials said restoration work is underway and explosives are being used to blast the heavy boulders blocking the roads on this stretch. One-way traffic is expected to be restored on this route in an hour or two, he added. Officials said that the passengers have been advised not to go towards Mandi till the road is opened.

“It is a nightmare experience as we are stuck here since last evening. There are limited hotels and other accommodation available nearby,” said Mohit, a tourist from Chandigarh. He said that there was a jam of more than two km on both sides, although the police and administration stopped the traffic at many places due to road blockade.

“We are stranded since last evening due to the road closure. Prashant, a stranded passenger returning from Chandigarh to Mandi town said, “A large number of vehicles are stranded on both sides of the roads at Aut and 6 Mile. Public Works Department Minister Vikramaditya Singh said that at least 301 roads have been blocked. due to heavy rains.

“Of these roads, 180 will be opened by Monday evening, 15 by Tuesday and the rest by June 30 depending on the weather conditions,” Singh told reporters. He said 390 earth movers and other heavy machines have been deployed to clear the roads and the department will issue a number on which people can report road-related issues by today evening.

There are about 30 road stretches in the state which are prone to frequent landslides. The PWD has incurred a loss of about Rs 27 crore so far during the current monsoon season, which began on June 24. Heavy rains lashed most parts of neighboring Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, bringing respite from the scorching heat, but also triggered landslides at several places, blocking the major Jammu-Srinagar national highway and other roads.

He said the authorities closed all schools up to class 10 in Ramban due to the threat of flash floods due to heavy rains. The 250-km Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, was blocked early morning by several landslides and boulders falling from a hill at Ramban town’s Cafeteria More and Mehar. day, officials said.

However, the stranded vehicles were removed around 2.30 pm after road clearance agencies managed to make it passable for one-way traffic. Officials said no fresh traffic was allowed on the highway this morning either from Srinagar or Jammu. Meanwhile, the IMD issued an orange alert, warning of heavy to very heavy and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places in Madhya Pradesh till Tuesday morning, while rain continued in many areas of the state.

IMD senior meteorologist Ved Prakash Singh said heavy rains accompanied by lightning are likely to continue in Sagar, Narsinghpur, Betul, Mandla, Seoni, Chhindwara, Balaghat and Jabalpur districts. A two-storey house collapsed on the adjacent structure in Ghatkopar area in Mumbai on Monday, injuring four people. According to civic officials, the city and its suburbs received moderate to heavy rainfall in the last 24 hours.