Heavy rain and cloud bursts lashed Uttarakhand, disrupting normal life, while also helping bring down forest fires raging in parts of the hill state. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned people from traveling to the hills as rain was predicted to hit the state until May 13.
Heavy rain disrupted normal life in Almora, Uttarkashi, and Bageshwar districts. In some parts of these districts, water flooded homes in low-lying areas, while traffic snarls were also witnessed on busy roads.
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But, the downpour helped extinguish the forest fires to a significant extent, especially in the Kumaon region.
Since November last year, 910 forest fives have occurred in the hill state, damaging about 1,145 hectares of forest cover.
Almora and Bageshwar also witnessed cloud bursts, while a hailstorm lashed Purola village in Uttarkashi.
The cloud burst in Almora’s Someshwar on Wednesday night led to the complete closure of the Almora-Kausani road completely closed, while low-lying shops and houses were filled with debris brought by the flowing waters.
Meanwhile, about half a dozen vehicles were also stranded and the Chanod market in Almora-Kausani was affected by the debris.
As of Thursday morning, there were no reports of casualties or damage to properties.
On Wednesday evening, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held a meeting with officials on monsoon disaster mitigation, as well as management of the Char Dham Yatra.
He ordered officials to use full resources and warned that any lapses would result in action.
While hearing a petition on forest fires in Uttarakhand, the Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on the state government saying that it “can’t depend on rain gods and cloud seeding. There should be a better way to stop this. The government should act faster”.
The top court also asked the state to look for long-term measures to save the environment.
Published By:
Karishma Saurabh Kalita
Published On:
May 9, 2024
