Cloudburst in J&K’s Kathua: 4 Dead, Several Injured as Railway Track and Highway Affected

Cloudburst in J&K’s Kathua: At least 4 people have died in the Janglote cloudburst in Kathua district, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh confirmed on Saturday.

A village is cut off and rescue and relief operations are on. Authorities have been informed.

The cloudburst has damaged infrastructure including part of the Railway track, National Highway and even Kathua Police Station, as per reports.

Dr Singh posted on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that he had spoken to SSP Kathua, Shobhit Saxena, immediately after receiving the information and confirmed that both civil and uniformed agencies had " swung into action" for rescue and relief.

“Spoken to SSP Kathua Sh Shobhit Saxena after receiving information about a cloud burst in the Janglote area. 4 casualties reported. In addition, damage has occurred to Railway track, National Highway while Police Station Kathua has been affected. The civilian Administration, Military and Paramilitary has swung into action. The situation being continuously monitored,” he posted.

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CM Omar Abdullah has condoled the death and prayed for the injured to get well soon. “Chief Minister has expressed grief over the tragic loss of lives and damage caused by landslides in several parts of District Kathua, including Jodh Khad and Juthana, which claimed 4 lives and left many injured. He conveyed heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families, prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured, and assured all necessary assistance," said an official statement from CMO.

He has also directed the administration to carry out immediate relief, rescue and evacuation measures to ensure safety and support to affected families.

Kathua administration issued a weather advisory and said "heavy to very heavy rainfall" is reported across the district. It also asked public to stay away from water bodies.

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"The public is strongly advised to avoid going near rivers, streams, nahallas and other water bodies, besides avoiding hilly and landslide and other risk-prone areas. Due to heavy rainfall, water levels can rise rapidly, increasing the risk of flash floods and landslides," the District Information Centre, Kathua, said in a post on X.

Helpline numbers are 01922-238796 and 9858034100.

Most of the water bodies have overflowed and Ujh river is near danger mark, officials said.

Landslides also hit Bagard and Changda villages under Kathua police station and Dilwan-Hutli in Lakhanpur police station area but no major damage reported.

Heavy rains have increased the levels of most water bodies and Ujh river is near danger mark, officials informed.

Administration is keeping a close watch and asked people to stay away from water bodies for their safety, PTI quoted officials.

Flash floods in Kishtwar came when Mata Machail yatra was on yesterday and is believed to have swept away several pilgrims and damaged several homes so far with over 70 people still missing, according to report.

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