Rain-battered north India counts its losses, rescue efforts gather pace

The rain ebbed in some places in north India and pelted down in others on Tuesday with at least seven more people dead and hundreds stranded as raging waters gushed through villages towns and fields from the desert state of Rajasthan to the hills of Himachal PradeshState governments stepped up relief and rescue efforts in the affected districts navigating the trail of destruction left behind by the incessant downpour of the last three daysFour of the latest fatalities were reported in Uttarakhand and the rest in Uttar Pradesh Rajasthan and Punjab This is in addition to the 37 deaths reported till MondayIn Himachal Pradesh which is among the worst hit and where at least 300 are stranded the meteorological department warned of the possibility of moderate to high flash floods in Shimla Sirmaur and Kinnaur districtsNorthwest India saw incessant rainfall during the last three days with many areas in Jammu and Kashmir Uttarakhand Himachal Pradesh Haryana Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan recording heavy to extremely heavy precipitationThis resulted in overflowing rivers creeks and drains that have massively damaged infrastructure and disrupted essential services in Jammu and Kashmir Himachal Pradesh Uttarakhand and PunjabIn the national capital the Yamuna has exceeded the evacuation mark of 206 metres prompting the relocation of people residing in floodprone areas to safer locations and a closure of the Old Railway Bridge for road and rail trafficThe river crossed the danger mark of 20533 metres in Delhi on Monday evening much earlier than anticipated According to the Central Water Commission CWC the water level at the Old Railway Bridge rose from 2054 metres at 5 pm on Monday to 20638 metres at 12 noon on Tuesday with Haryana releasing more water into the Yamuna from the Hathnikund barrage in YamunanagarIn Uttarakhand four pilgrims from Madhya Pradesh died and seven more were injured when a landslide triggered by heavy rainfall buried three vehicles near the Gangnani bridge on the Gangotri National Highway in Uttarkashi district on Monday nightThree of the four bodies have been recovered and efforts are underway to pull out the fourth from the rubble an official said adding that two of the seven people injured are in serious conditionFloods in the Jummagad river in Chamoli district on Monday night washed away a bridge built on it blocking the IndoTibetan border road and snapping contact with over a dozen border villages The bridge was located near Jumma village on the JoshimathNiti highway about 45 km from JoshimathIn Himachal Pradesh an Indian Air Force helicopter was requisitioned to airlift the tourists stranded at Chandertal in Lahaul and Spiti district but it had to return due to bad weather conditions A rescue team from Kaza has reached Kunzum Top and is just eight kilometres away from the lake officials saidAround 300 people mostly tourists are stuck in camps at Chandertal located at an altitude of 14100 feet following rain and snowfall in the region All the stranded people would be evacuated to safe places by Tuesday night officials said adding that about 100 people were rescued from different places in the hill state on MondayTwo teams have been deputed for road restoration one from the Losar side and the other from Kaza The team comprises members of the administration IndoTibetan Border Police ITBP Border Roads Organisation BRO police and local villagers they saidThe officials said since the onset of the monsoon on June 24 Himachal has suffered a loss of Rs 780 crore and the figure is expected to go up as excessive damage has been caused to roads bridges and water supply schemesThe rains have stopped since Monday evening and the rescue operations and road restoration work have gained paceChief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is slated to visit Kullu Lahaul and Spiti and Mandi during the dayIn Punjab and Haryana the weather cleared on Tuesday after three days of incessant downpour which left behind a trail of destruction in several parts of the stateOfficials said relief shelters have been set up in the affected districts in the two states including Rupnagar Patiala Mohali Ambala and PanchkulaIn Punjabs Hoshiarpur a 75yearold man died after the roof of his mud house collapsed due to heavy rains on the intervening night of July 9 and 10 In Sultanpur Lodhi a 24yearold man is feared to have drowned in the floodwaters of the Sutlej river near Shahkot while trying to hold on to his motorcycle in the flooded Chitti rivuletA total of 730 girl students of a residential school in Haryanas Ambala City were shifted to Kurukshetra after floodwaters entered their hostel complex following a beach in the Ghaggar river on Monday nightSince the level of the Yamuna river at the states Hathini Kund Barrage was rising constantly people in adjacent lowlying areas have been asked to stay away from the riverbank officials saidAt 9 am on Tuesday around 321 lakh cusecs of water was discharged from the barrage the officials said This is reportedly the highest quantity of water released from the barrage this yearMany villages of Yamunanagar Karnal Panipat and Sonepat districts and those adjoining the Yamuna river have been put on alertThere has been a breakdown in the power and water supplies in some of the worstaffected areas of Punjab and Haryana but authorities were working to restore themIn Haryana several key highways including the AmbalaLudhiana national highway have been temporarily closed for vehicular traffic due to waterloggingIn Uttar Pradeshs Gautam Buddh Nagar district a 42yearold man died while his wife and son were injured when their singlestorey house collapsed following incessant rainfall around midnightHeavy to very heavy rainfall was recorded in isolated parts of Rajasthan as well where a 35yearold man drowned in the swollen Karmvachhni river in Pratapgarh district on Monday nightThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or 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