Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], June 28 : The death toll in flash floods near the Manuni stream in Dharamshala has reached to seven, a senior police official said on Saturday.
Officials said that teams of SDRF, NDRF are assisting in the rescue operations.
"Six bodies were recovered, and now one more body has been recovered today. We are trying to identify the seven bodies. One person is from J&K, two from UP, and the remaining are from Himachal Pradesh... The weather remains poor, making it difficult to carry out search and rescue operations. We found one of the bodies stuck under a rock," Additional SP Kangra, Hitesh Lakhanpal, told ANI.
Earlier, Dharamshala SDM Mohit Rattan said that six bodies had been identified so far.
"Our 75% team of SDRF, NDRF, and Home Guards is in the upstream. And the remaining 25% of the team is downstream. Our rescue operation is still going on. Six people have been identified, and their bodies have also arrived... According to our headcount, two people are still missing, and we are in the process of finding them," he said.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast isolated heavy rainfall over Himachal Pradesh and neighbouring states between June 25 and July 1. An orange alert has been issued for June 29, warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall and potential flash floods and landslides in districts including Una, Bilaspur, Solan, Shimla, Sirmaur, Kangra, Chamba, Kullu, and Mandi.
The IMD added that a brief improvement was predicted today, followed by intensified showers on June 29 and 30. Locals and tourists have been advised to avoid riverbanks and slopes during this period.
According to the Himachal Pradesh State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), a cloudburst and sudden increase in the river's flow were reported near the Jiwa Trench Weir in Majhan Nallah around 1:41 pm on Wednesday.
Over 250 people were rescued in a major operation by state and central teams after flash floods hit parts of Dharamshala, officials said.