Himachal Pradesh landslide: Death toll rises to 15

Himachal Pradesh [India], August 13 (ANI): The death toll in the devastating landslide that hit Himachal Pradesh's Mandi has risen to 15, as more bodies were recovered by Sunday evening. As many as five persons are reported injured. The landslide hit Mandi on Saturday. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who visited the site earlier in the day, has announced an ex-gratia of Rs. 5 lakh each for next of kin of the deceased. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted about the incident, sending his condolence to the families. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Pained by the loss of lives due to landslide related accidents in HP's Mandi district. My condolences with the families of the deceased: PM</p>&mdash; PMO India (@PMOIndia) <a href="https://twitter.com/PMOIndia/status/896628356505927680">August 13, 2017</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Deputy Commissioner of Mandi, Sandeep Kadam had confirmed that "three vehicles were stranded after the landslide. A bus had also rolled down to nearly 800 meters from the National Highway and four people have been rescued from the debris". "The rain has hampered the rescue operation which is making it tough for the police and home guard," Kadam added. Rescue operations are underway. (ANI)