Kishtwar

Following a cloudburst in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district on Saturday, agencies were immediately deployed to the site and clearing operations are underway to remove debris and muck from the affected area, Deputy Commissioner (DC) Pankaj Kumar Sharma said.

Speaking to ANI, DC Sharma said that the cloudburst incident occured somewhere upstream in the Chatroo area in the district.

"There was a small drain in the area where the student market is located; it overflowed due to a cloudburst that occurred somewhere upstream. Debris and muck washed onto the road, and two adjoining shops and two houses sustained partial damage," he said.

He said agencies were immediately deployed to the site to clear the debris and muck.

"We immediately deployed agencies to the site, and clearing operations are underway; all the debris and muck are being removed," the Deputy Commissioner said.

"We have cleared the obstruction by immediately deploying machinery, including excavators and JCBs. We have now opened the highway for light motor vehicles," he added.

The cloudburst hit the Chatroo area in the early hours of Saturday, damaging some commercial outlets and shops. Union Minister Jitendra Singh earlier said that no loss of life had been reported in the incident.

In a post on X, Singh said he spoke to Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Pankaj Kumar Sharma after receiving reports of the cloudburst.

"Just now spoke to DC Kishtwar Pankaj Kumar Sharma, after receiving the reports of cloudburst in the Chhatroo area early this morning. No loss of life reported. Some commercial outlets/shops are damaged for which due compensation will be provided," he said.

The Union Minister also said that steps had been taken to strengthen the early warning system in the region.

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"To reassure the local residents, it is important to inform that after the experience of the last year's Chasoti cloudburst, the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, has installed two latest 'Early Warning Systems' (EWS) in Kishtwar and Machhail respectively," Singh said.

"In addition, an 'Automatic Weather Station' (AWS) is also in the process of being installed in the Padder area," he added.