Mamata expresses concerns over rain-triggered landslides in Jammu

Kolkata, Aug 27 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed her concerns over heavy rain-triggered disasters in Jammu and Kashmir and extended her solidarity to the people there.

Relentless rains pounded large parts of Jammu province on Tuesday, causing havoc in the region that witnessed landslides, inundation of low-lying areas and the washing away of several roads and bridges. A landslide on the route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine has left 32 people dead, while four others were killed in Doda district in separate rain-related incidents.

"The natural disasters in Jammu and Kashmir (due to a landslide on the way to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Temple) have kept us worried, and I express my solidarity for the people there," Banerjee posted on X.

She also wished a speedy recovery for the injured in the natural disasters in the state and prayed for the safety of those stranded in the area.

"The loss of lives saddens me, and I extend my condolences to the bereaved families. I also pray for the injured and wish them a speedy recovery. May Maa Vaishno Devi give them speedy healing. Prayers for the affected and the stranded, too," she added.

Heavy rains wreaked havoc not just in Jammu, which saw flashfloods, landslides and the pilgrimage to the Vaishno Devi shrine being suspended, but also in the Kashmir Valley.

Infrastructure was severely damaged, with bridges collapsing and mobile towers and electricity poles breaking like virtual twigs.

Telecom services collapsed in large parts of the union territory, leaving millions without communication and exacerbating existing problems, officials said. PTI SCH BDC