After a relentless monsoon in Himachal Pradesh brought the hill State to its knees this year by causing immense damage to life and property, separate interim government reports suggest that deforestation, ill-planned construction activities, illegal mining along the riverbeds coupled with climate change were a few reasons responsible for the natural calamity in the State.
During this year’s monsoon season, the State witnessed unprecedented damage as heavy rains triggered several incidents of cloud bursts, flash floods, and landslides. The State saw major losses in two different spells of monsoon depressions — the first was between July 9-11 when the monsoon depression coincided with that of a Western Disturbance, and the second spell during August 13-16, wherein, the continuous and heavy precipitation resulted in loss of human lives and property, especially in Shimla — the state’s capital.
