Centre releases 1st installment of Rs 122 crore to rain & snowfall-hit Himachal Pradesh for immediate rehabilitation

Shimla, September 29: The Centre has released 122 crore rupees as the first instalment to Himachal Pradesh to undertake immediate rehabilitation measures in the wake of heavy rain and snowfall.

 

Presiding over a meeting of state officials, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said the state suffered a loss of around 1,500 crores during the current monsoon season.

He said, several roads were damaged and water and power supply disrupted due to landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy rain. The Chief Minister said, over 1,000 people were rescued from the Lahaul valley.

Till now, the Indian Air Force (IAF) have rescued 234 people, including 58 children, from high altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh after recent flash floods made parts of the State inaccessible, a defence spokesman said on Friday. Apart from the IAF operations, 96 people have been rescued on foot by the Army. The Army detachments are also clearing the roads from debris to enable vehicular movement. “Landslides and snowslides in the past one week have trapped vehicles along the strategic Leh-Manali axis in Himachal Pradesh. The effect has been more pronounced near Baralacha La and along the road from Killingsarai to Bharatpur”, a defence spokesman said.