Indian states battle rain fury; IMD predicts above-normal rainfall in August, September

India is battling on many fronts as nature unleashes her fury across several states even as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicts above-normal rainfall in August and September with a high possibility of floods and landslides.

The havoc created by the landslides in Wayanad district of Kerala has hogged the headlines this week, while there have also been deaths and people missing due to heavy rains and landslides in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Goa, and most recently, in Karnataka.

Delhi has its cup of woes full as three IAS aspirants died tragically in the basement of a coaching centre that was flooded by torrential rainfall. The capital city struggles with waterlogging, traffic snarls, drainage systems that don’t work, encroachments, and the eternal blame game among the Delhi government, the MCD, and the Lieutenant Governor.

Wayanad landslides

The death toll in Wayanad keeps increasing as the days go by and the search and rescue teams battle harsh conditions in their race against time to save as many people as possible. The latest unofficial toll is 308, with more than 300 reported missing. More than 225 others have been injured, mostly in the worst-hit areas of Mundakkai and Chooralmala, according to government sources.

Rescue efforts have been hindered by a combination of challenges, including treacherous terrain due to destroyed roads and bridges, and a shortage of heavy equipment, making it difficult for emergency personnel to clear mud and huge uprooted trees that have fallen on houses and other buildings.

With the completion of the Bailey bridge between Chooralmala and Mundakkai by the army against all odds, the required equipment for rescue operations can be transported to the affected areas.

About 1,300 personnel from various agencies and the armed forces have been carrying out search and rescue operations during the past three days.

Kerala Revenue Minister K Rajan said that 9,328 people have been relocated to 91 relief camps in the district.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said rescuing victims is the first priority.

Uttarakhand

Heavy overnight rains caused rivers to swell and triggered flooding that resulted in the deaths of 14 people and left at least 10 injured in Uttarakhand.

The authorities were forced to suspend the Kedarnath Yatra as the rainfall set off landslides in several places along the pilgrimage route. Boulders blocked the route at Lincholi, Badi Lincholi, Ghoraparav, and Bhimbali.

The police said that 425 pilgrims were taken to safety in helicopters from Lincholi and Bhimbali while 1,100 pilgrims reached Sonprayag on foot with the help of rescue teams.

The Mandakini and Alaknanda rivers in Rudraprayag district were flowing close to the danger mark, said officials. They said that NDRF, SDRF and local administration teams have been deployed in the affected areas of the state.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the state disaster response force was carrying out rescue operations for the stranded pilgrims along the Kedarnath yatra route. He visited the disaster management centre in Dehradun on Thursday morning (August 1) to review the situation across the state.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday (August 2) spoke to Dhami over the phone to enquire about the relief and rescue operations underway in the wake of damages caused by heavy rain in different parts of the state.

In a post on X, Dhami said the home minister was given detailed information about the operations that are being carried out on war footing in the rain-hit areas. He also thanked Shah for assuring him of all possible help in dealing with the situation.

Officials said an unspecified number of pilgrims are still stranded on the trek route to Kedarnath. The IAF's Chinook and MI17 helicopters on Friday (August 2) joined the rescue operations underway en route to the Himalayan temple to speed up the evacuation exercise.

Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh reeled under monsoon fury as multiple cloudbursts caused flash floods that killed 5 people and left about 50 missing. The state emergency operation centre said the cloudbursts occurred in Rampur in Shimla district, Padhar in Mandi district, and Nirmand, Sainj, and Malana in Kullu district.

Officials said the Manali-Chandigarh National Highway has been damaged at several places due to landslides.

An official said that NDRF, police, and local rescue teams have been sent to the affected areas.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu called for an emergency meeting on Friday (August 2) at the state secretariat to take stock of the situation.

Jammu & Kashmir

Some parts of Jammu and Kashmir received heavy downpours that triggered flash floods, including the Dachan area of Kishtwar and the Khrew area of Pulwama.

Rainwater entered houses and shops in these localities.

The weather department has forecast intense showers for a brief period, with the possibility of flash floods, cloudbursts, and landslides.

Rajasthan

In the capital city of Jaipur, 3 people, including a 6-year-old girl drowned when rainwater gushed into the basement of their house in Vishwakarma area early on Thursday morning (August 1).

Officials advised residents not to stay in basements during rainfall.

A nearly 100-year-old building collapsed in Churu due to the heavy rains. Fortunately, nobody was injured. In Kota, a bus overturned and fell into a ditch leaving 4 passengers injured. The remaining 31 passengers were rescued.

Goa

Quepem in South Goa recorded 200 mm of rainfall, while Valpoi in North Goa received 174.6 mm, Sanguem in South Goa recorded 166.6 mm, and Ponda received 140 mm.

The IMD has issued an “orange alert” forecasting heavy to very heavy rain with winds of up to 55 km per hour in Goa on Friday (August 2).

The agency advised fisherfolk not to venture into the sea.

Karnataka

Officials said on Friday (August 2) that a landslide occurred on the Puttur bypass road, also known as Bantwal-Mysuru road and National Highway 275.

The police said there were no reports of any casualties or of people or vehicles stuck due to the landslides. Vehicles are being directed through Puttur town.

The State Highways department sent excavation machinery and teams of workers to clear the rubble at 8 am on Friday. The Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre has predicted more rains in the coastal and interior coastal regions.

Accurate early warning system needed, say experts

An accurate early warning system that correlates rainfall and the potential for landslides is imperative, say experts as rains create havoc in hills across India.

Given the scenario of erratic rain, extreme weather events, changing climatic conditions and fragile hills – both in the north and in the south – an accurate early warning system (EWS) based on empirical rainfall thresholds followed by a systematic evacuation protocol is essential.

“EWS is important to understand what are the vulnerable areas and which are the vulnerable communities. EWS will use the areas and the potentialities of the threat, the extent and timing of the threat so it can establish the mitigation measures, including evacuation,” Nilmadhab Prusty from the Centre for Development and Disaster Management Support Services told PTI.

As of now, there are no granular studies or EWS for landslide forecasts in the country.

According to an official from the NDMA, the existing landslide monitoring and early warning technologies cost crores of rupees and the need for a low-cost landslide early warning system (EWS) has been long recognised.

However, in the absence of any guideline or protocol for landslide mitigation at the national level, it is incumbent on the states to manage the disaster at their end.

“Early warning system has two parts. One is an accurate generation of the alert, which our scientific agencies are doing in a fairly good way and then, taking it effectively to the relevant people,” explained Sanjay Srivastava, a member of the Experts Group of the NDMA.

(With inputs from agencies)