Himachal Pradesh

Robotic surgery to begin at 3 medical colleges in Himachal by Jan 2026: CM

Robotic surgery will be operational at the medical colleges in Hamirpur, Nerchowk in Mandi, and the IGMC in Shimla by January 2026, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said in the Vidhan Sabha on Monday. In addition, smart labs are being established at Chamiyana and IGMC in Shimla and Tanda near Dharamsala, Sukhu said in a reply during the Question Hour, adding that the government is investing Rs 3,000 crore in the health sector. The state government aims to provide AIIMS Delhi-standard healthcare to its 7.5 million population. Patients in Himachal Pradesh are being charged on the lines of PGI Chandigarh, Sukhu said. Since the launch of robotic surgery in the state, 78 operations have been performed at Chamiyana, Shimla, and 38 at the Tanda Medical College, Kangra, in the past two months, he said. Responding to a supplementary question by BJP MLA Bikram Thakur, the chief minister said the training process for doctors is different, and funds are spent on the lines

Rain deficit: Himachal sees 1 mm avg rain in Nov against normal of 19.7 mm

With 95 per cent deficit rain in November 2025, Himachal Pradesh recorded its ninth lowest rainfall for the month since 1901, the local meteorological station said on Monday. The state received 1 mm average rain in November 2025 against the month's normal of 19.7 mm. Barring some normal rain activity on November 5, the state witnessed dry weather throughout the month. Sirmaur district recorded 100 per cent deficit rain, followed by Shimla, Mandi, Kangra, Hamirpur and Chamba districts at 99 per cent, Kullu and Una at 96 per cent each, Solan at 95 per cent, Bilaspur at 94 per cent, Lahaul and Spiti at 92 per cent and Kinnaur at 92 per cent. The same amount of rainfall was recorded in 1983 and 2021, while the highest rainfall of 88.5 mm was recorded in 1925, the Met office said. It added that dense fog was observed for nine days in Mandi district and for seven days in Bilaspur in November. Meanwhile, dry weather prevailed in the state on Monday. The local Met station has issued a ye

Himachal Assembly opens winter session with row over deferred local polls

The 10-day winter session of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly began on Wednesday with a discussion on the deferment of elections to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) and Urban Local Bodies (ULB) after the Opposition BJP moved an adjournment motion. Speaking on the motion, leader of the opposition (LOP) Jai Ram Thakur hit out at the government and accused it of delaying the PRI elections, fearing defeat. The elections to over 3,500 gram panchayats in the state are slated for December 2025-January 2026. The last date for conducting the elections is January 23, and the State Election Commission has set the ball rolling by initiating the preparation of electoral rolls. However, in a notification issued on October 9, Chief Secretary Sanjay Gupta announced that the polls will be held "only after restoration of proper connectivity", considering the damage to roads and private and public properties due to monsoon havoc this year. The state cabinet on Monday (November 24) approved the ...

Himachal CM orders homestay registration portal to be set up in 10 days

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday directed officials to make an online portal for registration of homestay units in the state within 10 days. Chairing a meeting here to review the tourism projects in the state, he said it should be ensured that payments be made online in all Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) hotels, General Administrative Department guesthouses and rest houses of various departments. According to an official statement, the chief minister ordered preparation of an online portal for registration of homestay units within 10 days. He also instructed to issue tenders for hiring competent software firms for preparation of user friendly online portals across all departments. Sukhu also issued directions for empanelling professional architects both for preparation of project designs for Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Tourism Development Board projects, the statement said. "I want to ensure that there should be no ..

HPBOSE Winter School exams 2025-26: Check timetable for Classes 3, 5, 8

The Himachal Pradesh School Education Board (HPBOSE), Dharamshala, has announced the examination schedule for winter-closing schools for the 2025-26 academic session. Check here

Priyanka slams Centre for not providing enough aid to disaster-hit Himachal

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday accused the Union government of not providing adequate help to disaster-hit Himachal Pradesh, claiming that the Centre was "ignoring" states ruled by the Congress. She made the remarks during a rally that followed after a statue was of six-time Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh was unveiled by senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi at Daulat Singh Park on the historic Ridge Ground in Shimla. "After Sukhvinder Sukhu became CM, heavy rains hit Himachal, but the Union government did not provide adequate help to Congress-ruled state despite several requests," Priyanka said. She alleged that the BJP government, which was only interested in winning elections, has discriminated against the Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh. From June to September this monsoon, 47 cloudbursts, 98 flash floods and 148 major landslides were reported in the state, killing 270 people in rain-related incidents. The total loss was pegged at Rs .

Snowfall continues in higher reaches of Himachal, Manali-Leh road blocked

Cold wave conditions continued in the high-altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh after fresh snowfall in the higher reaches of Kullu and Mandi districts and several parts of Lahaul-Spiti district, the local Met office said on Wednesday. The Manali-Leh road was blocked due to snowfall and vehicles going towards Ladakh were stopped at Darcha, officials said. In Lahaul-Spiti, Gondhla received 30 cm of snow followed by Keylong (15 cm), Hansa (5 cm) and Kukumseri (3.2 cm). Moderate to very heavy rain lashed the low and middle hills of the state, with Naina Devi receiving 132.6 mm of rain since Tuesday evening, followed by Solan (119.6 mm), Berthin (78.6 mm), Pachhad (78.2 mm), Malraon (75.4 mm), Kasauli (68 mm), Bharmani (67.2 mm), Bilaspur (64.8 mm), Kahu (64.1 mm), Dharampur (62.4 mm), and Ghaghas (55 mm), the local weather office said. Thunderstorms were witnessed in Murari Devi, Kangra, Palampur, Sundernagar, Jubbarhatti and Shimla, while gusty winds swept Narkanda, Kufri, Neri and ...

Landslide in Himachal kills 15 as bus crushed; PM condoles deaths

The accident took place in Bhalughat area in Jhandutta assembly segment around 6:30 pm, they said, adding the bus carrying 25-30 passengers was on its way from Marotan to Ghumarwin

Spelling errors on cheque leads to suspension of school teacher in Himachal

A government school teacher in Sirmaur district has been suspended, days after a photo of a cheque issued by him -- riddled with glaring spelling errors -- surfaced on social media, sparking concern over the quality of education in state-run schools. The action was taken by the Directorate of School Education against drawing teacher Atter Singh of the Government Senior Secondary School in Rohnat. The Rs 7,616 cheque, issued on September 25, went viral on social media due to the striking spelling mistakes, reading "Saven Thursday Six Harendra Sixtey", drawing public ridicule. Taking note, the Directorate sought a detailed explanation from the school principal, the concerned teacher and officials responsible for the lapse, officials said. The principal and the teacher were asked to appear in person before the Director of School Education, Ashish Kohli, on Saturday. During the hearing, Singh admitted to having made the error inadvertently due to a lack of due diligence, which has not

Himachal delegation holds talks with Japanese industry leaders in Tokyo

The Himachal team included senior officials, MLAs, and representatives from the state's industries

Centre transfers over ₹540 cr to 2.7 mn farmers in three flood-hit states

The government on Friday released over Rs 540 crore under the 21st instalment of the PM-KISAN scheme to more than 27 lakh farmers of three food-affected states - Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Uttarakhand. The PM-KISAN scheme is a central sector scheme launched in February 2019 by the Prime Minister to supplement the financial needs of land-holding farmers. Under the scheme, a financial benefit of Rs 6,000 per year is transferred in three equal instalments into the Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts of farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode. According to an official statement, "the release of the 21st instalment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme was declared by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, through video conferencing." This instalment has been specially prioritised for the farmers of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Uttarakhand which have been severely affected by recent floods and landslides. "A total of more than Rs 540 crore has be

Southwest monsoon withdraws completely from rain-ravaged Himachal Pradesh

The southwest monsoon that arrived in Himachal Pradesh on June 20 has completely withdrawn from the state on September 26, the Meteorological Centre Shimla said on Friday. The monsoon had withdrawn from eight out of 12 districts Chamba, Kangra, Una, Hamirpur, Bilaspur, Solan, Sirmaur, and Mandi on Wednesday and from most areas of Kullu and Shimla districts, along with some places of Lahaul-Spiti on Friday. In the past 11 years, the early withdrawal was recorded on September 29, 2015, and the late withdrawal was recorded on October 11, 2019. The state received an average rainfall of 1,023 mm, surpassing the normal rainfall of 730 mm by 40 per cent during the monsoon season. Barring the tribal Lahaul-Spiti district, which received 23 per cent deficit rains, all the other 11 districts received excess rain with Shimla recording 98 percent excess followed by Kullu at 95 per cent, Bilaspur 79 per cent, Mandi 75 per cent, Solan 68 per cent, Una 62 per cent, Hamirpur 59 per cent, Sirmaur

SC says Himalayan region facing existential crisis, seeks govt's response

The apex court raised some pertinent questions to the Himachal Pradesh government over its policies regarding tourism, construction, and mining

Mercury rises in Delhi as monsoon withdraws; east India braces for rain

Navratri week begins with clear skies in Delhi; Many parts of India remain under alert for heavy rainfall amid low-pressure systems developing in the Bay of Bengal

Himachal monsoon toll hits 448 with 261 rain deaths, 187 in road accidents

Mandi and Chamba emerged as among the worst-hit districts, each reporting more than 40 rain-linked fatalities

ED searches Himachal aerospace, realty firm promoters in Fema case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday said it has conducted searches against the promoters of a Himachal Pradesh-based company engaged in aerospace and real estate sectors as part of a foreign exchange violation probe linked to alleged undisclosed foreign assets. The action was undertaken on September 19-20 at six premises located in Delhi and Himachal Pradesh belonging to Manavinder Singh, his wife Sagri Singh and linked entities of the Imperial Group. The action was undertaken under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) in a probe related to "undisclosed" assets, investments and financial interests of the promoters held outside India, the agency said in a statement. The ED said it has seized financial statements and records apart from foreign bank account pass books during the searches and it was estimated that the value of these assets, located in Singapore, Dubai, British Virgin Islands and Thailand, was more than Rs 80 crore. It claimed to have found alleged secret .

Himachal rains: Death toll rises to 427; 243 rain-related, 184 in accidents

Public infrastructure has been badly hit. As of September 20 morning, 394 roads, including two national highways (NH-03 and NH-503A), remain blocked, the SDMA said

Heavy rains trigger landslides in Himachal, Mcleodganj cut off, school shut

A fresh spate of rain-related incidents has hit Himachal Pradesh after multiple landslides were reported on Friday, further disrupting life in the state, which has been hit hard by torrential rains during the past few months. After a landslide struck near a prominent school in Shimla on Friday, which forced the administration to order the closure of the institution for two days, another such disaster struck Kangra district. Tourist destination McLeodganj in the district was cut off following a massive landslide near a church. The landslide in the hill station blocked vehicular traffic, causing difficulty for the commuters. In Shimla, the landslide occurred in the Himland area near the St. Edwards School, one of the oldest schools here, prompting the administration to order the closure of the institution for two days Friday and Saturday. Circular road, the lifeline of Shimla, was closed at Himland throughout the day following the landslide. The traffic was diverted via Sanjauli Roa

Delhi sees cloudy skies, high humidity while heavy rain lashes North India

Heavy rain and thunderstorms lash north, east, and central India, causing floods, landslides, road closures, and displacement in several states

SC to rule on Sep 23 in suo motu matter over environmental conditions in HP

The Supreme Court on Monday said it would pass on September 23 its order in a suo motu matter concerning issues relating to ecology and environmental conditions prevailing in Himachal Pradesh. "List on September 23 for order. We will give you a brief order after summarising everything so that you can get specific instructions," a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta told the lawyers appearing for Himachal Pradesh. During the hearing, Himachal Pradesh's advocate general and additional advocate general informed the bench about a report filed by the state in the matter. Senior advocate K Parmeshwar, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter, said the report filed by the state covered many aspects, including tree cover. On July 28, a different bench of the apex court had said the state might "vanish in thin air" if the situation did not change. Observing the situation in the state had deteriorated, the top court had said climate change was having a "visib