Shimla, August 30 (PTI) Amid persistent rain, ten trains on the Shimla-Kalka narrow gauge railway line — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — were cancelled after soil surrounding a stretch of track in Himachal Pradesh’s Solan district was washed away.
Soil slippage between Koti and Gumman stations left a section of the track suspended in air, with railways halting operation of ‘toy trains’ on the section Saturday night in view of the situation, officials said.
As many as 10 trains between Kalka and Shimla were cancelled on Sunday, Shimla Railway Station Superintendent Sanjay Gevar said. Resumption of services will be considered only after the track is secured and its condition has been assessed.
According to a notification issued by the railways, soil was washed away from around the track near Bridge No 57 between Koti and Gumman.
Passengers who had pre-booked tickets for the ‘toy train’ service faced some inconvenience due to the cancellations, with its impact visible at the Shimla station. Usually bustling with tourists and travellers on weekends, the station was relatively quiet this Sunday.
Train operations on the Kalka-Shimla heritage rail line have been disrupted multiple times this monsoon due to rain and landslides.
The 96-km Shimla-Kalka railway line, over fascinating yet treacherous tough hilly terrain, and comprising 102 tunnels, 800 bridges and 919 bends, is an engineering marvel and a prime tourist attraction.
Besides, as many as 64 roads are closed for traffic across Himachal Pradesh as of Sunday morning, as rains continued to lash parts of the state.
A maximum of 24 roads are closed in Mandi, besides 16 in Kullu, seven each in Kangra and Sirmaur, four in Una, three in Shimla, two in Chamba and one in Lahaul-Spiti district, according to the state emergency operations centre. Additionally, 225 power transformers and nine water supply schemes are hit.
The Shimla meteorological centre has issued an alert for heavy rainfall in isolated places in Himachal Pradesh from August 31 till September 3.
Light to moderate rains lashed parts of the state since Saturday evening.
Dhaulakuan received 38.5 mm of rain, followed by Ghaghas with 30 mm, Palampur with 23.8 mm, Murari Devi with 22 mm, Kahu with 11.6 mm and Pandoh with 10 mm. Thunderstorms and lightning were witnessed in some parts, the weather office said.
Since the onset of monsoon on June 30 till date, about 103 people have died statewide in rain-related incidents, while the state has suffered losses amounting to Rs 1,184 crore, officials said. PTI BPL ARB ARB
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