"More than 15 days have passed since floods, roads not yet restored": Ex-Himachal Pradesh CM Jairam Thakur slams state government
Jul 30, 2023
Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], July 30 : Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur on Sunday hit out at the state government over the damage caused due to the downpour in the state. He said that more than 15 days have passed, but the roads have not been restored yet.
Thakur said, "It was not that it did not rain or there was no damage due to floods when our government was in power, but within three days the state's roads were restored. But now, more than 15 days have passed, and the roads are still not restored".
"Floods have caused a lot of damage to the people of the state. The roads here have been affected the most. The apple season is at its peak, still, the roads have not been restored", added the former Himachal CM.
Notably, former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur on Sunday visited the rain and flood-hit areas of Shimla district in the hill state.
The Himachal Pradesh Minister visited the rural Kotkhai, Jubbal, and Rohru parts of the flood-afflicted district, that are also the heart of Shimla's apple production.
The monsoon has so far claimed 187 lives since its onset on June 24 in Himachal Pradesh, the State Disaster Management Authority said on Saturday.
According to HPSDMA, until now 34 people are missing and 215 people have been injured. 702 houses have been damaged, besides 7161 houses partially damaged in the state. 241 shops have been damaged while 2218 cow sheds have been damaged due to rain and floods.
"So far a loss of 5620.22 crores rupees has been estimated. There have been 72 incidents of landslides in the state besides 52 incidents of flash floods," HPSDMA said.
Over 650 roads including three national highways are closed.
Earlier, Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, said that the state has faced the harshest rain and flood disasters in the past 75 years.
He also said that the loss incurred by the state due to the rain-induced damages could reach 8,000 crore rupees. The Chief Minister said there is a need for immediate financial relief from the Union Government.
"The central team has visited the state. We have demanded the pending 315 crore rupees of the 2022-23 disaster fund from the Union Government. The loss is estimated to be 8,000 Crore rupees. We are trying to restore the roads, electricity and water supply in the region," said the Chief Minister while talking to the media.
Besides this, more than 592 houses have been damaged, besides 5265 houses have been partially damaged. 235 shops have been damaged in the state, while 1616 cow sheds have been damaged due to rain and floods.
Over 650 roads, including three national highways, are also closed after record monsoon rains led to massive waterlogging, road caves-in, collapsed homes, and gridlocked traffic in Himachal Pradesh.
