Chandigarh, September 1: Incessant rain across north India continued to devastate Himachal Pradesh and Punjab on Monday, triggering landslides, floods and widespread damage to homes, livestock and infrastructure.
Himachal Pradesh, which has already recorded its wettest August in 76 years, was declared “disaster-hit” after relentless downpours claimed multiple lives. In Shimla district, three people were killed in two separate landslides. At Mohal Jot village in Junga tehsil, 35-year-old Virender Kumar and his 10-year-old daughter died when their home collapsed under debris. His wife survived as she was outside at the time, though several cattle also perished. In Kotkhai’s Chol village, an elderly woman was buried alive when her house caved in during a landslide.
Elsewhere in Sirmaur district, tragedy struck Chauras village of Nauhradhar, where a house and cowshed were flattened by a landslide. Sheela Devi, wife of Mohan Lal, and eight cattle were buried under the rubble. Officials announced Rs 25,000 in emergency relief for affected families.
The India Meteorological Department confirmed that Himachal received 68 percent surplus rainfall in August, making 2025 the ninth wettest August since 1901. The state had last witnessed comparable intensity in 1927, when 542.4 mm of rain was recorded in a single month.
In Punjab, heavy downpours battered Jalandhar, flooding homes and showrooms and disrupting power supply for several hours. In Patiala, the Ghaggar river swelled dangerously near Bhankharpur, prompting flood warnings for low-lying villages in Rajpura subdivision. The Mohali administration also suspended traffic on the Baltana bridge over Sukhna Choe and the Mubarikpur causeway on the Ghaggar River after additional water release from the Sukhna Headworks raised levels.
The scale of destruction has prompted political appeals for central assistance. Sangrur MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking an interim relief package of Rs 20,000 crore for Punjab. He also pressed the Centre to clear Rs 60,000 crore in pending dues. “Once a comprehensive assessment of damages is completed, the Centre must commit to a larger package,” Hayer wrote.
