3 min readShimlaJul 15, 2023 09:32 AM IST
First published on: Jul 15, 2023 at 08:07 AM IST
It is going to be a long fight back to normalcy for the rain-ravaged Himachal Pradesh as the government steps up efforts to restore the essential infrastructure, including water supply and road connectivity.
As of 10 am on Friday, 793 roads, five National Highways and a state highway were blocked at different locations. As per the state disaster relief management department, a total of 1,468 electricity distribution transformers (DTR) were still out of order while 963 water supply schemes were yet to be restored.
The data suggests that 261 roads are still blocked in Shimla — the highest among the districts — making for nearly 33 per cent of the total blocked roads in the state. It is closely followed by Kullu (203 roads blocked), Lahaul and Spiti (100) and Sirmaur (86). Mandi, among the worst affected by the rains and floods, now has only 32 roads that are still blocked.
State capital Shimla is again at the top of the list when it comes to water supply schemes (WSSs) that have been damaged. A total of 448 WSSs are yet to be repaired in Shimla followed by Mandi (258). The two districts together account for more than 73 per cent of the total damaged WSSs. Meanwhile, 810 power distribution transformers are out of order in Kullu, followed by 177 in Mandi, and 158 in Shimla.
Though most of the damage occurred in Kullu, Mandi and Lahaul and Spiti districts, but Shimla bore the brunt of the landslides. Of the total 53 landslides reported as on July 13 in state, 12 occurred in Shimla, three in Kullu and one in Mandi.
Meanwhile, after having evacuated 60,000 tourists, the police teams in the state have now shifted focus and started scouring inaccessible areas with tough topography and low mobile connectivity to trace stranded persons.
A number of tourists stuck in Kasol, Manikaran and other adjoining areas have refused to move out without their vehicles and have decided to stay back on their own for a few more days till the situation becomes normal and all roads are opened.
The state is expected to receive heavy rain at isolated places till July 18 with the local MeT office issuing a yellow alert. Light to moderate rains continued to lash some parts of the state and Kangra received 64 mm of rain, Palampur (33 mm) and Berthin (28.5 mm).
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu asked authorities to clear roads in apple-growing areas before the start of the marketing season, and sought exploring of alternative routes to transport the produce from these areas.
Presiding over a review meeting on the ongoing restoration works after the floods, CM directed officials to keep Theog-Rampur, Theog-Hatkoti, Rampur-Kinnaur, and Chhaila-Neripul roads functional with adequate deployment of men and machinery for the smooth passage of traffic.
Sukhu, who sanctioned Rs 50 crore to the public works department to purchase the required machinery, said there could be about two crore apple boxes in the state in the current season, which is less than last year due to adverse weather conditions.
The data suggests that 261 roads are still blocked in Shimla — the highest among the districts — making for nearly 33 per cent of the total blocked roads in the state. (Express Photo) 
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