Jammu: Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir faced severe damage in August due to heavy rains, flash floods, and landslides, officials said on Thursday, reporting that over 400 houses were affected.
Official data revealed that 52 houses were completely destroyed, 105 suffered severe damage, and 283 were partially damaged. The calamity also hit 125 cattle sheds and five religious structures.
The disaster led to the loss of 248 animals, further affecting the livelihoods of local residents.
On Wednesday, Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Sharma inspected the Kuntwara-Ohli Road in Drabshalla Block and the Kishtwar-Thathri stretch of the highway to review ongoing restoration work. He stressed that any delays or lapses would be met with strict accountability, underlining the importance of restoring all-weather connectivity.
Agriculture was significantly impacted, with 1,000 kanals of crop land and 1,002 kanals of horticulture land damaged. Infrastructure also suffered, including four damaged bridges, 29 panchayat ghars, and several community information centre buildings.
Authorities evacuated 210 people from vulnerable areas to ensure their safety. Rescue and relief operations, coordinated by Deputy Commissioner Sharma, were timely and helped mitigate both loss of life and further infrastructure damage.
Assessment teams are currently conducting ground-level surveys to evaluate the full extent of the devastation.
