Himachal Pradesh: Heavy rainfall disrupts normal life in Shimla

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], June 29 (ANI): Heavy rain lashed Himachal Pradesh's capital, Shimla, on Wednesday, amid rounds of rainfall hitting the entire state. 

The incessant rains have led to a flood-like situation in the state. In addition, it is also disrupting the everyday lives of people. 

Rahul, a tourist from Punjab, told ANI that he is stuck inside his hotel room due to the room. 

"It has been raining heavily and we are stuck inside our hotel rooms. Due to the rain, we could not go anywhere outside," said Rahul. 

Moreover, the Tourism and Civil Aviation Department, on Monday, appealed to the tourists to prioritize their safety first. 

Also, the Meteorological Department issued heavy rainfall warnings in the state for the next 5 days. 

"There is a possibility of rain for the next 5 days. Heavy rain alert continues at some places in the state", said Sandeep Kumar Sharma, IMD Scientist, Shimla. 

Significantly, due to the incessant rains, several roads and highways stood blocked in the state. The officials said on Monday that over 300 roads had been blocked due to the rain. It also caused a massive loss of the lives of people and the infrastructure of the state. 

Apart from the 19 people reported dead, three have been reported missing, 34 have been injured and a total of 352 animals died in nine incidents of landslides, six incidents of flash floods and one incident of cloudburst reported between June 24 to June 28 in Himachal Pradesh, data revealed from the state disaster management authority suggested.

The state disaster management authority also added that so far five houses have been damaged, and 36 houses partially damaged. In addition to that one shop and 20 cowsheds were also washed away by floods during the past five days, it stated.

Heavy rainfall has thrown normal life out of gear in the hill town of Shimla. Local residents have been left disappointed owing to landslides and frequent water logging in the streets of the city.

As per data available with the state disaster management authority ever since the onset of monsoon, the state has reported losses amounting to Rs 219.29 crore. (ANI)