Environment

At least 296 people have died after a powerful earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale struck central Morocco, the Interior Ministry confirmed on September 9. According to the US Geological Survey, the epicentre was in the High Atlas Mountains, 71 km south-west of Marrakesh, at a depth of 18.5 km. The quake struck at 11.11 p.m. and videos on social media showed people fleeing on the roads, damaged buildings.

The horror of the Himachal Pradesh weather disaster continues, with landslides, rainfall and building collapse incidents. On August 24, a landslide in Kullu resulted in a building collapse in the Anni market region. The visuals of the collapse is going viral on social media platforms, scaring the people. Furthermore, the concerned authorities rushed to the spot and started the rescue operation. Anni is a town, 76 km from district headquarters… read-more

Himachal Pradesh is facing the worst kind of natural disaster in decades, killing more than 72 people, and property damage worth Rs 10,000 crores. The heavy downpours and landslides in the regions of Himachal Pradesh in the past three days are expected to make it difficult for the rescue search, underway in Shimla. Furthermore, the IMD has issued a rainfall alert for the state on August 23-24, advising people to be cautious.

The recent havoc of rainfall in Himachal Pradesh is being a concern for the State Government. At Shimla's Summer Hill, a section of railway tracks hangs in the air after the earth under it was swept away during rainfall and landslide. These tracks are not from just another section in the country's vast railway network, but toy train line between Kalka and Shimla, also a UNESCO World Heritage attraction.

The Char Dham Yatra has been suspended in Uttarakhand on August 14 and 15 in view of the red alert issued in the state by the weather office.  Heavy rain battered Uttarakhand, inundating major rivers and their streams, and blocking national highways leading to the holy shrines of Badrinath, Kedarnath, and Gangotri. The rivers Ganga, Mandakini and Alaknanda are flowing above the danger mark in Rudraprayag, Devprayag and Shrinagar.