Overview

• Early Tuesday, a cloudburst in Kullu’s Lug valley washed away a bridge and shops, and authorities shut all schools and colleges in Kullu and Banjar for August 19 under an IMD yellow alert.
• Himachal authorities reported 389 road closures including two national highways, and a landslide blocked the Kiratpur Sahib–Manali highway at Dwada in Mandi with alternative routes also cut.
• In Shimla’s Benmore locality, 30 families were evacuated after a landslide disrupted power and water and blocked the road to Jakhu, with no casualties reported.
• Since June 20, the state has recorded 268 deaths linked to the monsoon season, 336 injuries and 37 people missing, with reported losses exceeding Rs 2,194 crore.
• The renewed emergency follows last week’s high-casualty cloudburst in Kishtwar, J&K, and experts and officials are pressing for uniform, science-based norms and stronger early-warning systems across the Himalayas.