Uttarakhand: Gangotri NH blocked due to landslide, restoration underway

The Gangotri national highway was blocked on Thursday due to a landslide near Purana Thana, Dharasu Bandh, according to the District Disaster Management Officer.  "The Gangotri National Highway has been blocked due to a massive landslide near Purana Thana Dharasu Bandh. Dozens of vehicles are stuck in jams on both sides due to road blockades", said Devendra Patwal, District Disaster Management Officer.  Patwal further added that the JCB machine of the Border Road Organisation has reached the spot.  "BRO's JCB has reached to open the road, but due to continuous hill cracks, there is a problem", he added.  Presently, the restoration is underway, as per the District Disaster Management Officer.  Notably, as incessant rainfall hit Uttarakhand, several landslides and cloudbursts took place. 

In another incident, a vehicle and a bridge got washed away in the Nachti drain on the Lipulekh border of border tehsil Dharchula of Pithoragarh district on Wednesday, breaking the connection of Om Parvat Kalapani with Gunji.  Incessant rainfall in the hilly and plain areas in Uttarakhand for the past nine days has resulted in an increase in water levels of the rivers and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams have been told to remain on high alert, authorities said on Wednesday. As per SDRF officials, nine days of constant rain in Uttarakhand's hilly and plain regions caused the rivers' water levels to rise, subsequently, the SDRF personnel have been instructed to maintain a high degree of alertness.

"River Ganga is once again in spate as a result of constant rain that has been falling in the plains and hills of all of Uttarakhand for the past nine days, increasing the risk of flooding in the nearby areas. With the unexpected increase in the water level of river Ganga, there is a danger of flood in the coastal areas of Mayakund, Chandrabhaga, Chandreshwarnagar etc," said officials. In addition, persistent rainfall and a breach in the Sonali River dam have raised a threat of floods in the Laksar town of Uttarakhand's Haridwar district. According to officials, the Sonali River dam breached near the village of Kuan Kheda. Meanwhile, The water level of Alaknanda, a major tributary of Ganga had raised significantly after water was released from the Srinagar Dam in the Pauri Garhwal district of the state.

The water level rose significantly after the release of 3,000 cusecs of water from the Srinagar Dam on the Alaknanda River.