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Search and rescue operations are underway with drones and sniffer dogs being used to trace 30 people who went missing after cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides wreaked havoc in the Thunag, Gohar and Karsog subdivisions of Mandi district last week, officials said on Monday. About 250 personnel from the National and State Disaster Response Forces, Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police and Home Guards, along with the administration and locals, are undertaking the search and rescue work. Besides, 20 teams are gathering information and distributing ration and medical kits in inaccessible areas, officials said. So far, 1,538 ration kits have been distributed to the affected people and immediate relief of Rs 12.44 lakh has been provided. An additional Rs 5 lakh each is being sent to the Thunag and Janjheli areas, they added. About 225 houses, seven shops, 243 cattle sheds, 31 vehicles, 14 bridges and several roads were damaged in the disaster. A total of 215 cattle have perished, while 494
With the recovery of two more bodies, the death toll in the cloudburst and flash flood-related incidents in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi has mounted to 13 while search is underway for 29 others missing, officials said on Thursday. Ten cloudbursts, three flash floods and a landslide were witnessed in different parts of Mandi district on Tuesday. Officials said two bodies were recovered this morning. While seven bodies were recovered from Gohar, five were from Thunag and one in Karsog subdivisions of Mandi district. Over 150 houses, 104 cattle sheds, 31 vehicles, 14 bridges and several roads were damaged in the calamities. A total of 162 cattle perished in the calamities, while 370 people, including 316 in Mandi, were rescued and five relief camps have been set up, the state emergency operation centre (SEOC), said. The Manali-Keylong road was blocked following floods in a drain near Solang Nallah and the traffic has been diverted through Rohtang Pass. Men and machinery has been deployed
Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh on Thursday said leaders should rise above party politics and work for the development of the state and cited a AB Vajpayee anecdote to make his case. Singh, who celebrated his birthday with workers at the Congress office in Shimla, told reporters, "I have been informed that the state is getting about Rs 20 crore more from the Centre for roads." The Public Works Minister said the state government has tried to prioritise welfare of the state at the top and sought assistance from the Union government for it. Singh shared an anecdote from the time when his father and Congress leader Virbhadra Singh was the chief minister in Himachal in 2003 and BJP leader A B Vajpayee was the prime minister. "Vajpayee once said that he does not share the ideology of Virbhadra Singh ji but said 'he is my personal friend' and gave Rs 500 crore to Himachal," the PWD minister said. "What I mean to say is that we should rise above petty politics and work for th
Himachal Pradesh Minister Vikramaditya Singh on Saturday said he has assuaged the Congress high command's concerns about ideology following his recent remarks on the street vendors issue and termed as "misconception" the perception that Uttar Pradesh model was being followed in his state. He said the multi-party committee formed by the Speaker in Himachal Pradesh would discuss all issues about street vending on October 3. Singh's remarks came a day after the Congress top brass chided him over his remarks on mandatory display of names by the street vendors and told him that no one was allowed to go against the party's policies and ideologies. Amid a row over the comments, Congress general secretary in-charge organisation KC Venugopal had a meeting here with Singh on Friday during which the minister was told that the party believed in Rahul Gandhi's mantra of fighting hatred with love. In an interview with PTI Videos, Singh said that there was no controversy on the ground and it was
Amid tension after demand for demolition of "unauthorised" mosque structure in Mandi and protests by Hindu outfits, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday appealed to the people to maintain peace and brotherhood and said tourists are welcome. "We appeal to maintain peace and brotherhood and welcome tourists," said the chief minister while addressing media persons after an all-party meeting here with state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, BJP leader Randhir Sharma, CPI(M) leader Rakesh Singha, AAP leader Surjit Singh and others. "I have appealed to everyone to maintain peace and make no provocative statements, and that is why an all-party meeting. No one is allowed to take the law into their hands. "We respect everyone. The land of Himachal has respect for all religions," the chief minister said. Referring to the protest on Friday by Hindu organisations demanding demolition of the "encroached" structure of a mosque in Mandi town, he said Himachal Pradesh is a