The Himalayan states are still suffering from the monsoon fury in the form of flash floods and landslides, taking a heavy toll on lives. On Wednesday, after a cloudburst in Doda district took 41 lives, including pilgrims on their way to the Vaishno Devi mandir. The cloudburst led to a massive rainfall in the Reasi district of Jammu, the highest ever rainfall recorded. 24 out of the 41 people died en route to Adhkunwari, while deaths were reported in Doda.
The Government Medical College mortuary has identified 18 bodies as residents of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi and Rajasthan. Authorities have responded immediately following the accident, but the problem is that all responses came after the calamity had already occurred. Raising several questions on the yatra itself. Manoj Sinha, the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, visited the hospital and enquired into the health of the injured people. The Governor, as well as the Chief Minister, have continuously pointed out that the Yatra was suspended on Tuesday due to weather conditions.
While a 9 lakh ex-gratia relief was announced by the government of the Union Territory. The Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed grief and also questioned the officials on the continuation of the yatra when there were clear suspensions owing to bad weather and repeated calamity warnings. The pilgrimage was itself suspended after a tragic accident where 4 people were buried in a landslide where they were taking shelter on the route to the Yatra.
The education department of Jammu has declared a holiday for the schools since last week, while the State Board of School Education postponed the exams for classes 11 and 12. The rainfall on Tuesday was the highest since 1910. Flash floods had also damaged the Tawi River bridge, causing havoc in the region. He further called the internet service providers to start internet services in the valley. Several highways, including the Jammu-Srinagar, Jammu-Pathankot, and Batote-Doda-Kishtwar, were severely damaged due to floods and landslides.
The flash floods and landslides in the valley are not just an isolated event but an impact of the continuous deforestation and construction in the valley.
