Munish Sood
MANDI: Relentless rainfall pounding Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district for the past 12 hours has triggered widespread disruption, with major landslides blocking all three national highways passing through the region.
Over 170 roads remain obstructed across the district, while the Beas continues to swell to the danger mark following the opening of floodgates at the Pandoh and Larji dams.
Since late Sunday night, incessant rockfalls and debris have blocked key stretches on the Chandigarh-Manali National Highway, particularly near 4 Mile, 9 Mile, Kainchi Mod (ahead of Pandoh), near Moon Hotel and around the Dyod flyover. Continuous downpour has made debris clearance a daunting task for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), with machinery deployed at multiple sites struggling against the weather.
Additionally, the Mandi-Kotli and Mandi-Pathankot highways have been shut due to multiple landslides, effectively cutting off road connectivity to and from several parts of the district.
Advisory issued against non-essential travel
District police officials have issued a strong travel advisory, asking commuters to avoid non-essential travel and instead opt for alternative routes.
“We request the public not to travel on national highways unless absolutely necessary. Landslides have made several stretches extremely dangerous,” said Mandi SP Sakshi Verma.
Pandoh police outpost in-charge Anil Katoch confirmed that as soon as the rain intensity decreases, restoration work will begin on priority, especially along the busy Chandigarh-Manali route.
The heavy rainfall has also led to a rapid rise in the Beas River’s water level. In response, the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) has opened all five spillway gates of the Pandoh Dam, releasing around 42,000 cusecs of water into the river.
Public urged to stay away from riverbanks
Simultaneously, the Larji Dam has been discharging nearly 70,000 cusecs of water, prompting expectations of a further surge downstream. The current water level at the Pandoh Dam is approximately 2,920 feet, still below the danger mark of 2,941 feet.
BBMB’s Executive Engineer at Pandoh, Chandramani Sharma, said the situation is under control. “There is no need for panic. We are monitoring the water levels around the clock, and emergency response teams are on full alert,” he assured. As a precautionary measure, water flow through the Baggi tunnel has also been suspended.
In light of the escalating water levels, the district administration and BBMB have jointly appealed to both tourists and residents to stay away from the Beas River. Local communities have also been instructed to keep livestock away from the river’s edge to avoid any untoward incidents.
