Heavy rains devastate hilly towns in Wayanad, HP
More than 300 have been killed in the toll due to landslides in the hilly towns of Wayanad, Kerala. The rescue operations have entered the fourth day on August 2, with about 40 rescue teams combing the area, despite the heavy rains and challenging terrain. They include army personnel, Defence Security Corps (DSC), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Forest and Fire and Rescue Service, swmming experts and volunteers, who are picking their way through the debris with rescue equipment, including earth movers, radar-based drones and sniffer dogs.
Climate change and unscientific construction mechanisms along with the heavy rains triggered the landslides in Wayanad early on July 30th. Constructions to convert the town into a tourist destination, enabling illegal quarrying and cutting down trees, hills and forests has ruined the fragile ecosystem.
Meanwhile, cloudburst at Mandi, Shimla and Kullu in Himachal Pradesh led to 50 missing and three killed. The situation is said to be under control, but roads and infrastructure have been damaged. Manali has lost connectivity. Again, army personnel, NDRF, SDRF, DCs and officials rushed to the areas. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Sukhu appealed to people not to go near canals and rivers. The Manali-Chandigarh National Highway has been damaged at several places.
Source: Indian Express, Indiatoday.in, Economic Times
Read More: In the news for heavy rains every year, why is Mumbai still water-deficient?
Parliament roof leaks under heavy rains in Delhi
Heavy rains in Delhi have allegedly led to the leaking of Parliament’s roof as well as the Press Club. The House was built in record time at a cost of Rs 970 crore.
Rain-related deaths went up to five in a single day in Delhi. Three were electrocuted near Gurgaon’s IFFCO Chowk metro station, and a woman and her son drowned in an open drain in East Delhi. As the city recorded 100 mm of rain in just one hour, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert in Delhi-NCR, warning of moderate to heavy rain or thunderstorms and gusty winds (30 to 50 kms per hour). Sudden heavy downpours led to traffic snarls and water-logging. The Delhi Traffic Police issued traffic advisories alerting the general public.
Meanwhile, Pune, received almost double the rainfall it usually gets from June to September, according to the IMD. The city had received 638.2 mm of rainfall as against the 346.2 mm of seasonal rainfall. There were heavy traffic jams in a large number of arterial roads, especially during the peak hours. The traffic police gave multiple reasons for it, including worsening road conditions, ongoing construction and repair work at many locations.
Source: Hindustan Times, Indian Express, Economic Times
Action to regulate coaching centres
The National Human Rights Commission asked officials to take surveys and prepare detailed reports regarding the deaths of three IAS aspirants in the flooded basement library of a Delhi civil services coaching centre on July 27. They noted that many complaints on waterlogging had been made to the authorities, but no action was taken. Courts denied bail to Manoj Kathuria, the driver of the SUV that broke the gates of the centre and the four co-owners of the building.
Delhi Education Minister Atishi announced plans for a law to regulate coaching centres, following the deaths of the aspirants. She said that legislation to regulate all types of coaching institutes would be brought in.
Meanwhile, Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh also announced that surveys of coaching centres in the city will be taken and notices to centres violating building norms would be sent. Strict action would be taken against centres using basements for classes or other habitable purposes.
Source: Indian Express
Read More: Most coaching centres in Bengaluru operate illegally, no action yet
Heat wave in Leh, rain relief in Srinagar
On July 30, for the second day, four flights (three IndiGo and one SpiceJet) were cancelled at the Kushok Bakula Rinpoche Airport in Ladakh’s Leh district, owing to heat waves leading to rarefied air. This is apparently the first time in six years that such cancellations have occurred due to the rise in temperature. Hundreds of passengers were stranded.
But meanwhile, as heat waves hit Leh, rains brought some relief from the record high temperature for Kashmir and many parts of Jammu. Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of 24.8°C, marking the 2nd highest minimum temperature in 132 years, 6.0°C above normal. The highest minimum temperature remains 25.2°C, recorded on July 21, 1988.
The MeT office issued an advisory warning that intense showers for brief periods may cause flash floods, cloudbursts, landslides, mudslides, and shooting stones in vulnerable areas.
Source: The Hindu, Daily Excelsior.com
Retail leasing shows 39% increase in Bengaluru
There has been a 39% annual increase in retail leasing in Bengaluru’s malls and high streets in the first six months this year, from January to June 2024, according to real estate consultant CBRE’s latest report, ‘India Retail Figures H1 2024’. The sectors leading tenant growth include fashion and apparel sector, food and beverage, and homeware and department stores. The report also reveals remarkable trends in the retail real estate sector.
In H1 2024, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi-NCR led office space absorption, which accounts for nearly 59% of total leasing. Retail leasing increased to a five-year high in the first six months of 2024, touching 3.1 million square feet in eight cities. The report also shows a booming Indian retail sector, with major global brands.
In the first half of 2024, Tier-I cities saw the addition of 0.5 million square feet of retail space. The second half of the year is expected to bring another surge in supply, with new investment-grade malls opening in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Mumbai, adding 3 to 4 million square feet. Additionally, Tier-II cities like Indore and Kochi led with a combined 56% share of the 0.4 million square feet of space absorbed.
Source: Business Standard, Hindustan Times
[Compiled by Revathi Siva Kumar]