Tribal Kinnaur, one of the driest districts in Himachal Pradesh, has received more than thrice the season’s normal rainfall this monsoon.
“From June 1 to September 23, Kinnaur recorded 535 mm rain, while the normal rainfall in the district is only 161 mm,” said the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
Once again, Kinnaur continues to remain cut off from the rest of the country this monsoon.
Following heavy rainfall this week, over a hundred tourists, including 24 foreigners, are still trapped in the Sangla valley for the last couple of days due to blockage of mountain roads leading out of Kinnaur.
The tribals here are surprised by the fury of the monsoon. In fact, half of Kinnaur is beyond the reach of the monsoon.
But now the high mountain desert terrain in the higher hills of Kinnaur experiences monsoon rains which was unheard of until a few years ago, say local tribals.
They are alarmed by the heavy rainfall in recent years. This is increasingly causing huge damage to standing crops, roads and other infrastructure in this remote region that borders Tibet.