Uttarakhand: Yamunotri, Badrinath highways blocked due to falling debris

Scores of commuters, including tourists as well as locals are stranded in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi after the Yamunotri National Highway was blocked at many places on Saturday due to falling debris near Gangnani, officials said.

Visuals from the area show vehicles being stuck in debris, leaving commuters stranded for hours.

According to the Uttarkashi administration, the highway was blocked at many places including Chhatanga, adding that a Tehsildar was sent to take stock of the situation.

Uttarkashi district disaster management officials said that due to heavy rains near Gangnani in the Barkot area, there has been a lot of debris and stones on the Yamunotri National Highway.

“The fresh spell of rains led to water-logging in Kasturba Gandhi residential school. The school children had to be shifted to safer places,” they said.
A team each from the State Disaster Response Force team and the fire brigade was immediately sent to the spot to carry out relief work, they added.

Similarly, Badrinath National Highway near Chamoli district was also blocked in three places due to falling debris as incessant rainfall continued in the region.

As per officials, the incident left a large number of commuters stuck on both sides of the national highway for hours.

“The roadway is blocked due to debris at Nandprayag, Belakuchi, and Pagalnala on the Badrinath National Highway,” Chamoli police said in a tweet on Saturday morning.

In Uttarakhand, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted heavy to very heavy rains accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning at isolated places over Dehradun, Uttarkashi, Tehri, Pauri and Nainital in the next 24 hours.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday reviewed the progress of relief and rescue works in Damkothi in Haridwar district in connection with waterlogging in the area. He also asked the higher officials to keep an eye on the situation continuously.