4833 water supply schemes worth Rs 350.15 cr affected due to heavy rains: Mukesh Agnihotri
Una (HP), July 11 (Representative) The Jal Shakti vibhag of Himachal Pradesh has suffered a loss of Rs 350.15 crore due to incessant rains in the state. Stating this here on Tuesday, HP Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said that 4833 schemes of the Jal Shakti Department have been affected due to heavy rains in the state so far, due to which a loss of Rs 350.15 crore has been estimated. He said that most of the drinking water schemes have been affected due to being on the banks of rivers, drains, and potholes. Apart from this, irrigation, sewerage, and flood control schemes have also suffered heavy losses. He said that there are a total of 10067 water supply schemes in the state, of which 3737 drinking water supply schemes worth Rs 223.63 crore, 983 irrigation schemes worth Rs 85.13 crore, sewerage schemes worth Rs 30.70 crore, and 53 flood control schemes worth Rs 10 crore have been damaged. Agnihotri said that due to heavy rains, the routes of buses plying on 1007 routes of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation have been suspended. While 452 buses of the state and out-of-state transport corporations were stuck at various places due to rain.
He has instructed the staff of the Transport Corporation not to ply the buses wherever there is a risk, and the bus drivers should take full precaution so that there is no harm. He said that it is the top priority of the state government to save the people of the state from loss of life and property due to heavy rains and floods. Along with this, instructions have been issued to the concerned departments for the smooth restoration of electricity, drinking water, and other essential services. Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said that the Public Works Department has suffered a loss of about Rs 250 crore in the state, in which roads and bridges have been badly damaged. He said that due to the excessive flow of water in the rivers, the water is flowing over the roads. He informed that six people who were stranded in the river near Nangwai in Kullu have been rescued safely due to a heavy spate in the Beas River.
He informed that, due to the continuous heavy rains in the state, monitoring is being done in areas where critical situations arise. The rescue operations are being carried out on a war footing by the State Disaster Management Agency. The Deputy Chief Minister said that the Ghaluwal bridge on the Una-Ghaluwal road has been restricted for vehicular traffic. In this regard, he has given the necessary instructions to the officials of NHI and Deputy Commissioner Una to prepare the estimate of the bridge and send it to the higher level for the reconstruction of this bridge. He said that the state government is standing with the people in this hour of trouble. He said that all possible help and security are being provided by the government to all those affected. He also urged the central government to help the state in this critical situation.