Torrential downpours cause landslides in Kashmir

Three people trapped after falling rocks and boulders block road in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Kashmiri hold umbrella’s as it rain in Srinagar Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, March 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)
Kashmiri hold umbrella’s as it rain in Srinagar Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, March 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan) [The Associated Press]

Heavy and steady rains have triggered landslides across parts of northern India, causing widespread travel disruption.

In Indian-administered Kashmir, the main link road between Ramnagar and Udhampur was blocked on Saturday after a rockslide that led to major traffic delays on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

As a result, commuters were forced to complete their journeys on foot, navigating over rubble and hillsides as the roads became impassable.

Further south, there were also reports of landslides in Shimla, the state capital of Himachal Pradesh.

Three people found themselves trapped in a makeshift house near the Indira Gandhi Medical College on Saturday morning and had to be rescued by emergency services.

India is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, with many of its 1.3 billion people living in areas vulnerable to natural hazards such as floods, landslides, cyclones, droughts and earthquakes.

Source: Al Jazeera, News Agencies