Malana Dam gate malfunction triggers water overflow, Kullu admin ask locals to stay alert
Shimla, July 24
The Kullu administration on Monday asked locals living on the banks of the Parvati River to stay vigilant as a malfunction in a gate of Malana Dam in the district is causing water overflow.
“We have alerted the people living in villages on the banks of the river that they would be evacuated in case of a breach in Malana Dam 2”, Deputy Commissioner Kullu, Ashutosh Garg told the PTI.
📷 URGENT ALERT 📷
Malana stage 2 Dam gate malfunction causing water overflow into Parvati River. STAY AWAY for safety! Authorities are on it.Village residents, AVOID the river vicinity. PLEASE SHARE to spread awareness. Safety must be our priority#Malana2Dam#SafetyFirst pic.twitter.com/kMCbp3Jd6f— Information And Public Relations Department, HP (@dprhp) July 24, 2023
So far, the situation is not serious as only 30 cusec water is overflowing and the Malana Dam 1 below the stream can hold water for some time in case of a breach, allowing evacuation, he added.
The local Meteorological Office issued an “orange” alert for heavy to very heavy rains at isolated places in eight of the 12 districts of the state on July 26 and 27 and cautioned of landslides, flash floods, mudslides and increased runoff in rivers and nullah.
The MeT also issued a “yellow” warning of heavy rains on July 25 and predicted a wet spell in the state till July 30.
Light to moderate rains lashed parts of Himachal and Dhaulakaun in Sirmaur received 49 mm of rain, Dharamshala 32 mm, Nahan 23 mm, Solan 22 mm and Palampur 17 mm.
Families in two houses were evacuated in Dohri Diwal in Solan after the houses developed cracks following incessant heavy rains in the past few days.
The families alleged that hill cutting done by a private company working on a four-lane project has weakened the foundations of their houses and the area is caving in. They have demanded strict action against the company.
Meanwhile, the 3rd Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) Pandoh has started a search operation in the Beas River to trace unidentified bodies after massive floods in Kullu and Mandi on July 9 and 10.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that rains caused damage in Rohru and Kotkhai areas of Shimla on Saturday. The apple season has commenced and directions have been issued to open roads in apple-growing areas on priority at the earliest.
Talking to the media persons here, Sukhu said that the central teams have visited the flood and landslide-affected areas and “we are hopeful that financial assistance from the Union Government would come soon”.
Stating that the immediate relief to the affected families has been increased from Rs 5,000 to Rs 1 lakh by changing the norms, he asked the opposition leaders to work together in times of disaster.
As many as 696 roads were closed for vehicular traffic till Monday evening while 359 transformers and 324 water supply schemes were affected, according to the state emergency operation centre data.
Till date, 164 people have died in rain-related incidents and the state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 5269 crore since the onset of monsoon on June 24 till July 24.
