Srinagar-Leh highway closed

Kashmir cut off from Ladakh, Baltal base camp for Amarnath Yatra inaccessible; toll in Wayanad 387, HP 13; 10k evacuated from Kedarnath

Neethu Jojo, a woman staff of a pvt Wayanad hospital, was probably one of the first to alert emergency services about the devastating landslide, but lost her life before rescuers could reach her

Heavy rain lashed western and central parts of India on Sunday while a cloudburst in J&K led to the closure of the arterial Srinagar-Leh national highway, cutting off the Kashmir valley from Ladakh and rendering the Baltal base camp for the Amarnath Yatra inaccessible. The death toll in last week's landslides in Kerala's Wayanad and Himachal rose to 387 and 13, respectively, while over 370 people, including pilgrims, stranded on the rain-ravaged trek route to Uttarakhand's Kedarnath, were evacuated.

So far, over 10,000 people have been rescued Kedarnath, Bhimbali and Gaurikund. The trek route to Kedarnath suffered extensive damage as a result of a cloudburst in Junglechatti near Lincholi last Wednesday.

JHARKHAND RAIN

Heavy rainfall in Jharkhand has led to the swelling of a couple of rivers, forcing the East Singhbhum district administration to issue an alert for people residing in the lowlying areas.

The water level in Kharkai and Swarnarekha rivers has been rising for the last couple of days due to incessant rains.