Landslide-hit area in Shimla city declared containment zone to prevent spread of disease

Krishna Nagar, a landslide-hit area within Shimla city, where a slaughterhouse was buried under debris leaving several animals dead, has been declared as a containment zone in view of the risk of spread of disease.
Two persons were killed in the landslide that occurred on 15 August in which about eight houses, including some makeshift structures and a slaughterhouse, were razed to the ground. An area measuring about 500 square metres in the vicinity of the slaughterhouse has been declared a containment zone, Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, Aditya Negi told media persons on Monday.
Restrictions have been imposed on the movement in the area and the residents living near the slaughterhouse and downstream have been asked to avoid using water from the sources coming from the drain near the slaughterhouse, officials said.
Teams of officials from the Animal Husbandry Department and Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) also visited the site and Mayor Surinder Chauhan. The mayor also added that chemicals, disinfectants and bleaching powder had been sprayed in the area to prevent the spread of any disease as the carcasses of the animals are decaying. “We are waiting for the soil (mud) to get dry to remove the debris as the use of heavy machinery for removing moisture-laden soil could endanger the houses above in Krishna Nagar locality,” he said and added the debris would be removed soon. The district authorities have evacuated people living in endangered houses in the area, while a large number of people had shifted to safer places earlier on their own.