Govt to focus on Disaster-resilient infrastructure to mitigate losses from cloudbursts, flash floods and landslips :

1. Himachal Pradesh losing properties worth crores every year due to the heavy rain. This year only the state has suffered losses around 1200 as per the initial assessment due to landslides, cloudbursts and flash floods during this monsoon besides loss to 81 human lives and 493 animals. Heavy rain causing heavy damage to roads. Many roads were even completely wiped out due to landslides and rising level of rivers and rivulets.

2. The state has witnessed normal monsoon this year with just 6 percent rain deficit. However, heavy rain spell for three days in the month of June caused maximum damages. 201 landslides and 14 cloudbursts were reported this monsoon.

3.The state to assess the damage from monsoon, and asked the Public Works, Rural development, Irrigation and Public Health and other departments to work out on an action plan to avoid heavy damages to human lives and properties in the future by making improvement in technique and infrastructure.

4. Government stressed on developing disaster-resilient infrastructure to face the challenges of cloudbursts, flash floods and landslips. It would be conducted with the help of experts before next rainy season to minimize the damages due to roads, electricity lines and drinking water schemes etc. due to heavy rains.

5.The Public Works, Irrigation and Public Health and Rural Development departments to identify vulnerable points so that they could be make disaster resistant to avoid heavy damages every year during the monsoon period.

6.The Horticulture department to ensure timely reporting of damages to the horticulturists and payment of compensation well in time. Government also underlined the need to deploy adequate men and machinery well before the onset of monsoon to counter any emergency situation with ease.

7.The Chief Secretary of state hoped that the IMCT(Inter-Ministerial Central Team) will put up the case of the state with the government for adequate compensation as the state has suffered a huge loss due to heavy rains during this monsoon.

8. Various parts of the state, heavy damages were witnessed especially at Kathalag in Ghumarwin sub-division, Dhani and Lahru in Nurpur area of Kangra district, Rohru and Nerwa in Shimla district.

State Disaster Management :

State of Himachal is prone to various hazards both natural and manmade. Main hazards consist of earthquakes, landslides, flash floods, snow storms and avalanches, draughts, dam failures, fires – domestic and wild, accidents – road, rail, air, stampedes, boat capsizing, biological, industrial and hazardous chemicals etc. The hazard which however, poses biggest threat to the State is the earthquake hazard. The State has been shaken by more than 80 times by earthquakes having a magnitude of 4 and above on the Richter Scale as per the recorded history of earthquakes. As per the BIS seismic zoning map five districts of the State, namely Chamba (53.2%) Hamirpur (90.9%), Kangra (98.6%), Kullu (53.1%), Mandi (97.4%) have 53 to 98.6 percent of their area liable to the severest design intensity of MSK IX or more, the remaining area of these districts being liable to the next severe intensity VIII. Two districts, Bilaspur (25.3%) and Una (37.0%) also have substantial area in MSK IX and rest in MSK VIII. The remaining districts also are liable to intensity VIII.