74 Dead so far…
On Thursday, the death count from the monsoon rains in Himachal Pradesh reached 74.
The rescue workers pulled out another body from the rubble of a Shiva temple in Shimla while two more were killed in Chamba.
Twenty-one people died in three major landslides in Shimla, including the one at the Shiva temple in Summer Hill.
The state has been hit by 113 landslides in the 55 days since the monsoon started, causing losses of Rs. 2,491 crores to the Public Works Department (PWD) and Rs. 1,000 crores to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
In Shimla, a section of the railway tracks has been cleaned away.
Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that rebuilding the infrastructure damaged by the recent landslides is a "mountain-like challenge".
Experts say that frequent landslides are caused by unscientific constructions in the ecologically fragile Himalayas, depleting forest cover, and structures near streams that block the flow of water.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted moderate rainfall with thunder in a few places with spells of heavy rainfall at isolated places in Shimla, Solan, Mandi, Chamba, and adjoining areas.
The state received heavy rains for three consecutive days, starting from Sunday.
The rains decreased after Tuesday, and there were only light showers at some places.
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