300 stranded in Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra as water is released from Pong Dam

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DHARAMSHALA: With water being released from the floodgates of the Pong Dam, about 300 people have been stranded in Indora sub-division of Kangra district.

Deputy Commissioner Nipun Jindal has written to the Indian Air Force for help to rescue the stranded people. Jindal said the NDRF and SDRF teams had been deployed to rescue people.

The people who are stranded live in Mand area of Indora which lies inside the riverbed of the Sutlej. With BBMB authorities releasing about 1 lakh cusecs of water from the Pong Dam, most of the Mand areas in Indora sub-division are flooded.

The Pong Dam has already reached the retaining capacity of 1,395 feet and with inflows remaining above 2 lakh cusecs the BBMB authorities have little option but to release water downstream.