Panchvaktra bridge in Mandi washed away as rain batters Himachal Pradesh

Mandi (Himachal Pradesh) [India], July 9 : As heavy rains in Himachal Pradesh continued to batter almost all districts, triggering landslides and flash floods at various regions, the Panchvaktra bridge in Mandi collapsed, officials said.

Additional District Magistrate, Mandi, Ashwani Kumar said that the historical bridge washed away as the river's water level increased.

Earlier in the day, the bridges, connecting Aut village to Banjar, and of Pandoh village were swept away by the overflowing Beas river in Mandi district. Taking note of the incident, former state Chief Minister Jairam Thakur said that the washed-away bridges were the "identity of Himachal".

The Leader of Opposition in the Himachal Assembly also appealed to the Centre to provide all possible assistance to the persons, affected due to inclement weather.

The former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh also urged the state government led by CM Sukhu to evacuate people safely as soon as possible. Along with this, he appealed to the people of Himachal Pradesh to stay safe in their homes during the rainy season and come out only when absolutely necessary.

The hilly state experienced landslides and flash floods in various districts due to the rising water levels in the Beas River, resulting in the loss of several lives.

Moreover, due to continuous heavy rainfall and inclement weather conditions in several districts of Himachal Pradesh, train services on the Shimla-Kalka route were also suspended on Sunday.

Station Superintendent, of Shimla Railway Station, Joginder Singh toldthat landslides caused by heavy downpours have damaged railway tracks at multiple locations between Shimla and Kalka, leading to the suspension of train operations.

"Yesterday, two trains, including a passenger train, were cancelled for today. In the morning we learned that the weather forecast is very bad, like the past few days, and yesterday too it rained overnight, causing landslides at many places between Kalka-Shimla routes, and uprooting trees. So we decided to suspend all train services on the Shimla-Kalka route," the official said.

According to Meteorological Centre, Shimla, moderate to heavy rainfall with thunder at most places and very heavy rainfall at isolated places is very likely to continue in the districts of Shimla, Solan, Kinnaur, Sirmaur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Bilaspur and Hamirpur districts.

As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), isolated extremely heavy rainfall is also very likely in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and adjoining districts of Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh on Sunday.