Shimla: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra reached Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday for a day-long visit to the rain-hit state, which has recorded over 400 deaths since the onset of monsoon. Accompanied by Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, Priyanka left for Kullu to tour the state’s worst-hit districts Kullu and Mandi. Later in the day she will visit Solan district. Party in-charge Rajeev Shukla and state party president Pratibha Singh are also accompanying Priyanka during the visit.
Earlier, the Chief Minister welcomed her on her arrival at Chandigarh Airport. According to the Chief Minister’s Office, she is in Manali, She will visit Kullu and Pandoh areas where she will interact with the families affected due to floods and landslides. She is likely to visit rain-affected areas of Shimla on October 13.
Chief Minister Sukhu has demanded from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare the disaster caused by rain in the state as a national disaster and demand a special relief package. Sukhu recently met the Prime Minister at a dinner hosted by President Draupadi Murmu on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in New Delhi and apprised him of the severe damage to infrastructure and loss of life due to heavy rains in July and August. He told the Prime Minister that more than 400 people died and more than 13 thousand houses were damaged due to the disaster, leaving thousands of families homeless.
