Himachal rains: Living in relief camps, over 500 flood-hit families in Mandi district await rehabilitation

Dipender Manta

Mandi, August 30

Flood-affected families of the Sadar subdivision in Mandi district are living in relief camps provided by the district administration for their temporary stay. The monsoon fury devastated 245 houses completely under the subdivision, while 267 houses were damaged partially. As a result, over 500 families under the Sadar subdivision of the district were affected directly due to heavy rains, flashflood and cloudburst incidents. Now, these affected families are awaiting their rehabilitation.

During a visit to Sambal village adjoining the Chandigarh-Manali highway near 7 Miles, it was noticed that there was no sign of the house of Nitesh Kumar of Jagar panchayat. On August 14, the cloudburst devastated the house of Nitesh within minutes and he lost his three family members in the incident. The entire area was covered with big boulders and he was searching for his missing family members under the debris. A team of the State Disaster Response Force was also deployed in the area to search the victims.

Talking to The Tribune, Nitesh said: “The contractor engaged in the four-laning of the Chandigarh-Manali highway is working at a snail’s place to remove the boulders from the area. The bodies might be trapped under these boulders. So, there is a need to work at a faster pace to remove the big boulders from the area, which may prove helpful to trace the bodies of missing persons.”

“I lost my house, my three family members and all belongings. I have no land to construct a new house and am currently living in a relief camp. I urge the state government to rehabilitate us at a safe place as soon as possible,” he said.

At Sambal village, six persons were swept away on that fateful day. Among the victims were three members of one family and three labourers.

At Maseran village under Mujhvad panchayat, one house was damaged completely on August 14, while a few others suffered slight damage. In that incident, two women were swept away in the flashflood, who are still untraceable.

Jodh Singh, a native of Maseran village, said the affected family is living in Mandi town in a rented room. The cloudburst had occurred in the wee hours on August 14, when two members of a family were sleeping in that house. Apart from this house, several vehicles parked in the area were also damaged. Few houses had partial damage, where debris entered the houses.

Major damage occurred to houses at Pandoh, Sanyard, Tarna hills, Mangvain and few other places. Now these affected families are living in relief camps, while few families have taken refuge at the houses of their relatives.

Durga Das, Vicky, Vijay Kumar, Kishan Chand, Mahender Singh and many other affected residents said in a unanimous voice that they want their early rehabilitation from the state government.

Sadar SDM Om Kant Thakur said relief amount had been disbursed to the affected families, while 500 food kits and 1000 tarpaulins were given to the affected families. The administration is taking care of the affected families.