River In Spate Breaks Off Part Of Concrete Bridge In Uttarakhand

Dehradun:

Incessant rain in Uttarakhand, which has claimed at least five lives, has led to the collapse of an important bridge in Pauri today. 

The Malan river is in spate and the increased velocity of the flowing water led to the collapse of a section of the concrete bridge, which links the district to Kotdwar Sigaddi. 

The bridge is on the important Kotdwar Sigaddi-Laldhang-Haridwar route and traffic has been obstructed on the road. At least 50,000 people have been cut off and may struggle for supplies if the bridge is not repaired soon.  

Videos show one end of the bridge’s middle section lying in the water as the river continues to flow ferociously past it. 

Earlier today, the Badrinath National Highway (NH-7) was blocked due to boulders falling from a hill on a highway close to Pipalkoti in Chamoli district, news agency ANI reported.

The same highway was blocked at several other points including Gulabkoti and Helang, following landslides in the region caused by heavy rainfall, the report said. 

The rain in the region has also led to a flood-like situation Delhi, where the rising water in the Yamuna river shattered a 45-year-old record yesterday. 

The water level in the river rose further to 208.57 metres at 11 am today as the Hathnikund barrage in Haryana continued to release water into the river. The current water level is three metres above the danger mark.

Many homes close to the Yamuna are flooded and even the posh Civil Lines area was waterlogged as river water entered nearby localities. The water is barely 350 metres from the residence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the Delhi Assembly.