17 bodies recovered from debris of Shiv Mandir in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla

As many as 17 bodies have been recovered so far after the tragic landslide in the Summer Hill area of the rain-battered Shimla district of Himachal Pradesh on August 14, the official said on Sunday.

Chief Secretary of the government of Himachal Pradesh Prabodh Saxena, while speaking to ANI said that two bodies of a family are still to be recovered.

"One rescue operation is going on in the Shiv Mandir and so far 17 bodies have been recovered. Two bodies of a family of seven are still to be recovered. It seems that there are three more bodies. I had a word with the district authorities and I think they will be able to recover these bodies in another 2-3 days," Saxena said.

He further said that in the next 3-4 days, the movement of heavy vehicles including those carrying apples in Kullu will start.

"On the restoration side, the emphasis now is on the movement of apples from Kullu. In the last two days, we have repaired a BBMB road in Kullu which was lying in disuse for many years. Now we are working on another portion of NH. We expect that in the next 3-4 days, the movement of heavy vehicles including those carrying apples in Kullu will start," he added.

Incessant rain has led to landslides, cloudbust and flash floods, causing significant damage in the State.

The government of Himachal Pradesh has declared the whole state as a 'natural calamity affected area'.

According to the latest information provided by the state government, the total monetary loss in Himachal has reached Rs 8014.61 crore since June 24.

A total of 2,022 houses have been fully damaged, and 9,615 houses have been partially damaged, with 113 landslides occurring in this year's monsoon season.

A total of 224 lost lives in the monsoon fury while 117 people died in road accidents in the state so far, according to the government bulletin.

Seventeen bodies have been recovered to date in the Summer Hill incident and further operations are underway to recover the missing bodies.