The recent rainfall incidents have battered Jammu and Kashmir with an unusually intense monsoon, with the persistent occurrence of flash floods and landslides — mostly concentrated in the first three weeks of the month — leaving widespread death and destruction, particularly across the Jammu division.
According to official figures, the death count stands at around 28-30, with roughly six people still missing as search operations continue in Poonch and Rajouri.
Poonch has suffered the heaviest losses, followed by Rajouri and Doda, while the Kashmir Valley recorded comparatively fewer deaths. Entire families in Poonch were wiped out in flash floods, and a landslide buried a house in the Domail Dhok area.
Infrastructure damage has been extensive: hundreds of roads, bridges and river embankments were destroyed; key highways were shut for days; shops and vehicles were swept away; and power, water and communication lines were cut for days in rural pockets. Besides, major pilgrimages, including the Amarnath Yatra and Vaishno Devi Yatra, were suspended.
Experts describe this as a compound disaster rather than ordinary heavy rain. According to IIT Roorkee’s Prof. Ankit Agarwal, active monsoon conditions combined with a western disturbance over Jammu pulled moisture into the western Himalayas, while strong orographic lifting intensified rainfall. Repeated wet spells also left soils saturated, meaning even moderate rain can now trigger rapid flooding and landslides.
Prof. Anuradha Sharma of Jammu University points to climate change enabling the atmosphere to hold more moisture, pushing monsoon rainfall further inland towards areas like Ladakh. The region’s steep, geologically fragile terrain drains poorly, while settlements built along riverbanks and slopes heighten the risk.
Kashmir received around 325 per cent above-normal rainfall between July 17 and July 23 alone, with at least a dozen cloudbursts recorded recently. Authorities have identified 654 vulnerable villages, home to roughly 7.22 lakh people, across high-risk districts, including Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi and Doda.
All of these factors combined — including rapid urbanisation, development activities, the creation of infrastructure such as dams, bridges and tunnels, and the conversion of forest land for commercial purposes — are contributing to the intensity and frequency of weather-related deaths and destruction in climate-sensitive regions such as Jammu and Kashmir.
By Waseem Ahmad Ganie
Follow us
