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The Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (NH-3) has once again been blocked near the Pandoh Dam in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi after a landslide struck the area on Saturday morning.
The incident occurred around 4 AM, when large boulders and debris fell onto the road, severely damaging a stretch of the highway and causing visible cracks in the surface. Vehicular movement has come to a complete halt, with all four-wheelers stopped on both sides of the highway, leaving hundreds of commuters stranded. While pedestrians are crossing the affected stretch on foot, risking their safety amid unstable conditions. This marks the second landslide at the same spot within 24 hours. On Friday, a similar incident occurred around 8 AM, leading to a nine-hour-long blockade, after which the traffic was restored only by 5 PM. On Friday, Mandi Superintendent of Police (SP), Sakshi Verma, told ANI, "A landslide occurred here today. NHAI officials are here to clear it. At present, vehicular movement has been stopped from both sides. All efforts are being made to ensure vehicular movement." Meanwhile, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), as of 5 PM on August 1, 283 roads were blocked, 314 distribution transformers (DTRs) were disrupted, and 221 water supply schemes were non-functional due to relentless rainfall in the state. Two national highways, NH-21 and NH-303, were also shut down, further paralysing movement in the state. The worst-hit districts in terms of road and power disruptions include Mandi (174 roads blocked), Chamba (171 DTRs disrupted), and Kullu (67 roads blocked). Meanwhile, the monsoon death toll has risen to 173 across the state from June 20 to July 31, 2025. Of these, 95 deaths are directly attributed to rain-related incidents like landslides, flash floods, and house collapses. At the same time, 78 people died in road accidents, underlining the deadly impact of rain-induced road conditions. (ANI)
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