SHIMLA, AUGUST 18: Himachal Pradesh has suffered losses of nearly ₹995 crore during the 2026 monsoon season so far, with the State Emergency Operations Centre recording 196 deaths, 299 injuries and one missing person due to disasters between June 30 and August 17.
The cumulative damage report prepared by the Revenue Department’s Disaster Management Cell puts the overall financial loss at ₹99,479.96 lakh, or about ₹994.80 crore.
The scale of the disaster is particularly stark in public infrastructure, with PWD alone reporting losses of ₹744.08 crore, while the Jal Shakti Vibhag has suffered another ₹227.46 crore in damage.
Power-sector losses stand at ₹5.31 crore, while health infrastructure has recorded losses of about ₹2.14 crore. Education-related damage has been assessed at about ₹2.14 crore.
The damage has also spread deep into private property and livelihoods. The report records monetary losses of ₹6.08 crore to private property, besides ₹72.04 lakh in agricultural crop damage and ₹6.92 lakh in horticulture losses.
Animal losses have been assessed at ₹1.11 crore, with 425 animals/birds reported dead, including 425 poultry birds.
The housing sector has taken a substantial hit, with 32 pucca and 53 kachcha houses completely damaged, while another 116 pucca and 196 kachcha houses have been partially damaged.
The report also records damage to 14 shops/factories, five labour sheds/huts, 270 cow sheds and five gharats/shamshan ghats.
Kangra has emerged as the worst-hit district in the district-wise damage assessment, with a reported loss of ₹298.39 lakh, followed by Chamba at ₹241.40 lakh and Shimla at ₹217.05 lakh. Sirmaur has recorded ₹148.74 lakh, while Mandi stands at ₹147.42 lakh.
The human toll has been spread across almost the entire state. Chamba recorded 25 disaster deaths, Kangra 25, Shimla 26, Sirmaur 24, Kullu 23 and Lahaul-Spiti 19. Mandi recorded eight deaths, while Kinnaur recorded seven.
The second part of the official report reveals another grim dimension of the monsoon season.
Landslides accounted for 14 deaths, cloudbursts for five, lightning for one, snakebite for eight, falls from trees or steep rocks for 28, electrocution for 15 and other causes for nine, taking disaster-related deaths in the detailed table to 80.
Road accidents have added another 116 deaths during the same period. Chamba recorded 16 road-accident deaths, Sirmaur 17, while Kullu and Shimla recorded 14 each. Kangra and Una recorded 12 each and Solan 11.
The death toll of 196 included 116 road fatalities that happened during this period.
The figures underline that Himachal’s monsoon crisis is no longer confined to immediate relief and rescue.
The overwhelming share of the assessed financial damage is concentrated in roads and public water infrastructure, indicating the enormous cost of restoring connectivity and essential services after repeated extreme-weather events.
With the monsoon still underway, the ₹994.80-crore loss figure is not necessarily the final bill.
The latest cumulative statement covers damage only up to August 17, 2026, leaving open the possibility of further losses before the season ends.
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