Himachal Pradesh: All Schools, Colleges In Mandi To Remain Shut On August 16, 17 As Rain Pounds State

An order in this regard has been issued by the District Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner Arindam Chowdhary.

Commuters walk by the debris that has blocked the Chandigarh-Manali highway after a landslide, near Mandi.

Source : PTI

New Delhi: In view of the incessant rainfall in Himachal Pradesh, the administration has announced a holiday on August 16 and 17 for all private and government educational institutions, vocational training centers, and Anganwadi centers in Mandi district, reported ANI.

An order in this regard has been issued by the District Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner Arindam Chowdhary. The decision has been taken in view of the rains and landslides which has caused road blockage in several parts of the district.

Arindam Chowdhary has asked the heads of all educational institutions to ensure compliance of the orders, according to ANI.

"Landslides are occuring from time to time at many places. In such a situation, it would not be safe for the students and staff to travel in educational institutions. In view of this, a holiday has been kept in all the schools of the district on August 16 and 17," the order stated.

Earlier on Monday, the administration had declared a holiday in the educational institutions of the district in view of the heavy rains. The order states that due to heavy rains in the district, 403 roads including two National Highways have been blocked.

In case of any emergency, the Deputy Commissioner urged people to immediately inform on the mobile numbers 8544771889 and 9459455714 of District Disaster Management Center Mandi, reported ANI.

Heavy rains have battered Himachal Pradesh since Sunday, triggering landslides and cloudbursts that blocked several roads and led to house collapse incidents.

The number of deaths in the twin landslide sites in Shimla’s Summer Hill and Fagli has risen to 16, officials said.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that the death toll was likely to go up as he visited the affected areas to take stock of the situation. He said Solan, Shimla, Mandi, and Hamirpur were among the worst-affected districts in the state.

A total of 170 incidents of cloudburst and landslide have been reported in the state this monsoon season and about 9,600 houses damaged, reported PTI.