DHARAMSHALA/MANALI: Educational institutions in Kangra and Chamba were closed on Friday as heavy rains lashed the two districts. In Kangra, Dharamshala recorded its highest rainfall in 60 years for a day in August, officials said.The meteorological department here said 292.4 millimetres rainfall was recorded in Dharamshala in 24 hours ending 8.30am on Friday. The earlier record for a 24-hour period for August was 316.4 mm of rainfall which was witnessed on August 6, 1958, meteorological centre director Manmohan Singh said.Night-long rains triggered massive landslides and flash floods, damaging several roads and bridges in Kangra, Chamba, Kullu and Mandi districts. Downpour also snapped electricity supply various areas in Kangra. Railway services also remained suspended between Himachal and Punjab. As many as 13 trains run on narrow gauge track, connecting several villages of these two states.The Kangra administration on Friday morning ordered closure of schools and colleges in the district. The Chamba district administration ordered closure of schools in Dalhousie and Bhattiyat sub-divisions. In Mandi, school closure order was issued for Padhar subdivision.“We found 66 roads closed due to landslides in Chamba and Kangra district after nightlong rains. Several roads and retaining walls were washed away in flash floods too. We deployed machines in the morning to assist the public,” said S K Ganju, chief engineer, public works department. He said the department was forced to hire private machinery to clear the roads.The authorities said in Chamba district, a road connecting Tunuhatti to Kakira was destroyed in a cloudburst. There was no loss of the life in the incident. The maximum damage happened particularly in Kangra and Shahpur constituencies. With drains running out of capacity, heavy water flow entered several house, making the structures weaker.“People mainly complained of water entering their houses,” said Sandeep Kadam, commissioner, Dharamshala municipal corporation.According to officials, rains have caused a loss of Rs 170 crore in Kangra and Chamba districts.Chamba superintendent of police Monika Bhutunguru has appealed to devotees coming from Punjab for Manimahesh Yatra to travel in passenger vehicles and not in goods transport vehicles. The yatra is beginning from September 3.Landslides, triggered by heavy rains, also blocked Chandigarh-Manali and Pathankot-Mandi national highways for several hours on Friday. A massive landslide near Gamrola Khad in Bilaspur district early morning blocked the highway for hours. Excavators were deployed from both end of the road to clear tonnes of debris. Another landslide near Thalot also blocked the national highway.The damaged stretch of the road at Kotrupi in Mandi district, which was restored for vehicular traffic after three weeks on August 19, was washed away in flash floods. The Pathankot-Mandi national highway remained closed for the whole day. Only light vehicles were diverted to the bypass road.Condition of Kullu-Manali national highway also deteriorated at some places. Upper areas of Kullu received torrential rain in the evening, raising the water level in Beas. Pathankot-Mandi, Chandigarh-Manali and Manali-Leh highways were opened for traffic by late evening on Friday.

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