DEHRADUN: Torrential rains have wreaked havoc across Uttarakhand’s mountainous regions, with Rudraprayag district suffering the most following a devastating cloudburst. Four residential houses were completely destroyed in the Bagardhar area after continuous heavy rainfall from Friday midnight into early Saturday.
The intense downpour and cloudburst caused widespread damage in multiple areas, including Chameli, Roomsi, Talibagar, Ginwala, and Silkot. According to reports from the state capital, four houses were reduced to rubble, and several others are at risk. A cowshed in Ginwala village was also badly damaged.
Teams from the Revenue Department and Nagar Panchayat promptly visited the affected locations to assess the damage. Uttarakhand Women’s Commission Vice-President Aishwarya Rawat also toured the impacted villages and assured residents of all possible assistance.
Agricultural losses were severe, particularly in Roomsi village, where hundreds of nali (a local land measurement unit) of farmland were washed away. Villages near the Nagar Panchayat Agastyamuni, including Chameli, Ginwala, Saudi, and Silkot, reported damage to houses, cowsheds, drinking water systems, irrigation canals, and footpaths. Many homes were filled with debris, forcing residents to stay up all night out of fear.
Nagar Panchayat Councillor Sonia Sajwan confirmed that the houses of Dinesh Singh, Mahendra Singh, Yashveer Singh, and Dalip Singh in Bagardhar, under Gram Panchayat Chameli, were completely destroyed. Thankfully, the families had evacuated in time as debris started flowing in and have now been sheltered in the Panchayat Bhavan.
However, around ten more homes, belonging to villagers such as Deepak Singh, Avatar Singh, and Jagdish Singh Sajwan, remain under threat.
Meanwhile, in Bedubagad, two vehicles were buried under debris but were later recovered with help from National Highway authorities.