Seven members of a family were among 12 people killed in Ramban and Reasi districts during the early hours of Saturday as incessant heavy rains continued to batter Jammu province.
In view of the loss of lives and widespread damage to property, Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to arrive here on Sunday on a two-day visit to review the situation and the relief and rescue measures.
Officials said a couple, along with their five minor children, were buried alive when a massive landslide hit their house in Reasi district’s far-off Mahore area.
The landslide was triggered by heavy rains which have been lashing the area for the past few days, officials said, adding the house was built on a hill slope.
The deceased have been identified as Nazir Ahmed (42), his wife Wazira Begum (35), and five minor sons – Bilal Ahmed (13) and Mohammad Mustafa (11), Mohammad Adil (8), Mohammad Mubarak (6) and Mohammad Wasim (5).
A rescue operation was launched by the locals and the police, but only their bodies could be retrieved.
In Ramban district, five people, including a mother and son, were killed as a cloudburst hit Rajgarh village around 12:30 am. The victims have been identified as Bidya Devi, Om Raj, Dwarka Nath, Ashwani Sharma and his mother Virta Devi.
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Officials said a school building and two houses were also destroyed.
Ramban Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Illiyas Khan reached the spot to supervise rescue operations. Officials said the affected families have been shifted to safer locations.
Both Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah have expressed grief over the loss of lives.
With these deaths, nearly 130 people, including several pilgrims, have been killed because of incessant rains, cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides across Jammu province since August 14 morning.
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At least 65 people, mostly Machail Mata pilgrims, were killed, and nearly 100 were injured when a massive cloudburst hit Kishtwar district’s Chishoti village in Paddar area on the morning of August 14.
The yatra has now come under the scanner, amid questions on whether it was allowed despite an alert issued by the Indian Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Srinagar Centre about heavy rains and the possibility of landslides, flash floods and cloudburst in vulnerable areas.
Nine days later, another cloudburst struck near Adh Kunwari en route to the Vaishno Devi shrine in Trikuta Hills, killing 34 pilgrims on August 26, with many pointing fingers at the Shrine Board for allegedly allowing the yatra despite warning of inclement weather by the IMD.
