Kinnaur Kailash Yatra suspended, one pilgrim dead, 700 rescued after cloudburst triggers flash flood in Himachal

CHANDIGARH, AUG 6 : The Kinnaur Kailash Yatra in Himachal Pradesh has been suspended as a pilgrim died and nearly 700 stranded devotees were rescued and evacuated in a nine-hour operation after a cloudburst triggered a flash flood that washed away a large part of the trekking path, including makeshift bridges at Tanglippi and Kangarang.

The pilgrims currently on the route have been safely sheltered at Milling Khata and Gufa, and all necessary arrangements have been made for their safety.

Most of the trekking paths have either become dangerously slippery or have been hit by landslides, posing a serious threat to the safety of pilgrims. In view of these adverse conditions, the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra is being temporarily suspended until further notice, stated an official order.

Sources said that on August 5, as many as 402 pilgrims who had set out from Malling Khata village were stranded, prompting a rescue operation. Of these, 177 pilgrims were brought back safely to Malling Khata the same day. However, due to worsening weather conditions and rising water levels in a nearby stream, around 225 pilgrims became stranded in a cave. A leaf shelter has been set up for rescued pilgrims at the Shongtong Army Camp, where 183 individuals have already arrived.

Deputy Commissioner of Kinnaur, Dr. Amit Sharma, said that all devotees are safe and arrangements have been made for their meals. “They are being provided medical facilities at the hospital, and the remaining stranded people are also being rescued and brought directly to the army camp,” he said.

Sources said that the rescue operation, which began last night, successfully evacuated 417 pilgrims. The operation was carried out by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and Kinnaur Tourism Authority (KTA), as the pilgrims were stranded at Malling Khata due to the cloudburst. These devotees were trapped on different sides of the mountain and unable to cross the river. They were rescued using a rope-based traverse crossing technique — in which pilgrims are attached to a rope and safely moved across the river to safer locations.

 “A 34-member Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) team, in coordination with a 14-member team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), was mobilised, and the search and rescue operation was launched after a distress call was made by the Kinnaur district administration,” said an official.

Sources said that on Thursday morning, the authorities informed the ITBP that more pilgrims were stranded at other locations, after which additional rescue teams were mobilised.

ITBP wrote on X, “Responding to the requisition from DC Kinnaur, #ITBP has deployed a rescue team under AC/GD Sameer with mountaineering and RRC equipment after two makeshift bridges on the Kinnaur Kailash Yatra route were washed away due to incessant rains, leaving several yatris stranded.”

Kinnaur Kailash, considered to be the winter residence of Lord Shiva, is located at an altitude of 19,850 feet. The yatra began on July 15 and was scheduled to continue till August 30.

Meanwhile, educational institutions — including schools, colleges, and anganwadis — were closed in Sunni, Kumarsein, Chopal, Dodra Kwar, Jubbal, Theog, and Rampur subdivisions of Shimla district; Karsog and Sundernagar in Mandi district; Nirmand in Kullu district; and some subdivisions in Solan district. Several schools in Shimla city announced holidays or switched to online classes.

Also the Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (NH 21), Old Hindustan-Tibet Road (NH 05), Mandi-Dharampur (NH 3) and Aut-Sainj road (NH 305) were closed for vehicular traffic following landslides. Shimla-Kalka National Highway, which was blocked at Chakki Mor near Koti in Solan district, has been opened for vehicular movement.

Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited (SJPNL) officials have cautioned residents about a likely disruption in water supply for the next two to three days due to high turbidity at the source.

The State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) reported that 537 roads, including four national highways, remained cut off as of Wednesday evening. Of these, 314 are in Mandi district — which has been severely affected by cloudbursts, landslides, and flash floods — and 117 are in Kullu district.

-PTI