Woman, daughter killed in landslide following heavy rains in Tehri

New Tehri: A 42-year-old woman and her teenage daughter were buried alive by a landslide in a village here on Saturday following incessant rainfall in the Budhakedar area of Tehri Garhwal district, officials said.

The bodies of Sarita Devi and 15-year-old Ankita were retrieved during a search operation carried out by police and SDRF personnel in Toli village, according to District Magistrate (DM) Mayur Dikshit.

A retaining wall behind their house collapsed amid heavy rains in the early hours of the day and they were buried under debris, he said, adding that two other members of the family were rescued.

Violent currents of the Dharmganga river washed away three shops in Budhakedar, besides damaging several bridges, breaching approach roads and disrupting power and water supply lines.

People living close to the river have been shifted to safer locations, the DM said.

A cowshed was destroyed in the landslide in Toli, trapping six animals, Ghansali SDM Apoorva Singh said.

Both the Balganga and Dharmganga rivers in the area are in spate following incessant downpour. Roads running along their banks have also been damaged.

Schools in the Ghansali area have been closed as a precautionary measure, Bhilangana's Block Education Officer Sumer Singh Kaintura said.

Heavy showers for the past two days in different places of Budhakedar and a cloudburst in Toli and Bhigun villages have caused extensive damage, the DM said.

A bridge on the Jhala-Budhakedar road was washed away, the officials said and added that more than 500 metres of the Budhakedar-Jakhana and the Budhakedar-Jhala motor roads were also washed out.

Dikshit said ration kits have been distributed among residents of the affected villages.

A temporary relief camp has been set up in an inter-college building in Bhigun for the people of Bhigun and Toli villages, he added.

The revenue department is assessing the damage. Local MLA Shakti Lal Shah also reached the site of the incident and monitored the relief and rescue work.

He said the government will provide all possible help to the affected families.

A huge mound of debris has accumulated at a power substation in Thatyud, damaging equipment and the transformer, he said. It has disrupted power supply in the area.

Executive engineer of the electricity department Amit Anand said it may take two to three days to restore power supply in the area.