Uttarakhand Rains: In light of the Meteorological Department's alert of heavy to very heavy rains across various districts of the Garhwal division, the Char Dham Yatra has been postponed for Sunday, July 7. This decision was announced by Garhwal Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey, news agency ANI reported. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted heavy to very heavy rainfall, with isolated extremely heavy downpours, over Uttarakhand for the next two days.
According to an IMD bulletin issued on Saturday, isolated extremely heavy rainfall is very likely on the 6th and 7th of July.
The bulletin further highlighted a moderate to high risk of flash floods in several watersheds and neighbourhoods of Uttarakhand's meteorological sub-divisions over the next 24 hours. "Surface runoff and inundation may occur in fully saturated soils and low-lying areas," the IMD warned, urging residents to be cautious.
Rainfall measurements until 8:30 AM IST today recorded significant precipitation across the region. Rishikesh in Dehradun received 17 cm of rain, Champawat saw 13 cm, while Mori in Uttarkashi and Lohaghat each reported 12 cm. Other notable rainfall figures included 9 cm in Devprayag, Haridwar, and Pithoragarh, and 8 cm in Dehradun, Haldwani, and Nainital.
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Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami Directs District Magistrates To Remain On High Alert, Urges People To Stay In Safe Places
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has directed District Magistrates of the affected districts to remain on high alert. He appealed to the people to exercise caution and stay in safe places in view of potential disasters caused by heavy rains, ANI reported.
Additionally, the Chief Minister has instructed Secretary Disaster Management and Rehabilitation Vinod Kumar Suman, along with other disaster management officials, to maintain constant vigilance from the State Emergency Operations Centre of USDMA. Immediate action should be taken on any information regarding disasters received at the State Emergency Operations Centre and District Emergency Operations Centre, he stated.