Three people drowned in Khoh River Pauri district as rains continued to lash parts of Uttarakhand on Wednesday, officials said. The incident happened on Tuesday night when a car lost control and fell into the river in Kotdwar area of the district. While three car occupants drowned in the river, two others came out of the vehicle on time, police said.
The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) has recovered the body of one of the victims -- Muhammad Israr (35), a resident of Kiratpur area in Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor district, they said. Many routes in the state, including national highways, have been closed due to landslides following incessant rains, affecting normal life as well as the Chardham Yatra.
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The Badrinath National Highway in Chamoli district has been closed at five places between Chamoli and Joshimath due to landslides. Chamoli Additional District Information Officer Ravindra Negi said the administration has kept the pilgrims visiting Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib at safe places in Gauchar, Karnprayag and Nandprayag.
According to information received from the State Emergency Operation Center, the Yamunotri National Highway is blocked due to landslides at Dharasu and Kalyani, while the Gangotri Highway is also closed between Pakodanala and Dharali due to debris. The Border Roads Organization is trying to clear the debris and open the road. Rudraprayag Highway is also closed due to landslides in Sirobgarh.
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Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Wednesday once again urged people to avoid unnecessary travel in the wake of incessant rains in the state and said his government has issued disaster relief phone numbers to help those stranded. The chief minister, in a tweet, said, "Our government has issued disaster relief numbers to help the citizens of Uttarakhand who are stranded in different places of the state and in Himachal Pradesh."
He said that he is personally taking information about the condition of roadways and rains in all the districts and the district administration and the SDRF have been instructed to remain on high alert everywhere. Dhami held a meeting with the officials in the evening to review the rain situation.
After the meeting, the chief minister said that Prime Minister Modi has assured all possible help to the state and on Wednesday an amount of more than Rs 400 crore has been released for the state. Dhami said that due to bad weather, the meeting of the Central Zonal Council, which was to be chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on July 15 in the state, has been postponed for the time being.
Meanwhile, the administration of several districts including Chamoli has declared a holiday for schools on Thursday in view of the meteorological department's forecast of incessant rains.
