SHIMLA : Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu today said that the state government would develop disaster resilience infrastructure in Himachal Pradesh at an estimated cost of Rs. 3,500 crore to strengthen the state’s capacity to withstand natural disasters and minimize future losses.
Presiding over the valedictory session of the high-level workshop on “Towards Resilience Infrastructure Planning in the Western Himalaya” at Dr. Manmohan Singh Himachal Pradesh Institute of Public Administration (HIPA), Shimla today, he said that Himachal Pradesh, being a mountainous State with difficult geographical conditions, has become increasingly vulnerable to natural disasters.
Recalling the devastating disaster of 2023, he said that nearly 75,000 tourists were stranded across the State. The state government with the coordinated efforts of Ministers and the administration, ensured the safe evacuation of all stranded tourists and restored essential services on a war footing. He also appreciated the efforts of Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi and MLA Sanjay Awasthi, who personally led the rescue operation to evacuate around 300 stranded tourists from Chandratal Lake.
The Chief Minister said that the 2023 disaster completely damaged around 23,000 houses and claimed 51 lives. Standing firmly with the affected families, the state government introduced historic changes in the relief policy by increasing compensation for fully damaged houses from Rs. 1.30 lakh to Rs. 8 lakh. He said that the lessons learnt from the 2023 disaster enabled the government to respond much more effectively during the 2025 disaster, resulting in comparatively lower losses despite the severity of the situation.
Sh. Sukhu asserted that increasing cloudburst incidents in the State were linked to climatic changes and enhanced evaporation from reservoirs created by large dams. While Himachal Pradesh is currently facing this challenge, he said that other States are also likely to experience similar impacts in the coming years. He emphasized that addressing such challenges would require bold policy decisions and necessary changes in development practices. The State Government, he said, was fully prepared to take such decisions in the larger public interest to mitigate the losses.
He said that Himachal Pradesh is endowed with immense natural beauty and tourism remains one of the key pillars of the State’s economy, supporting the livelihoods of thousands of families. The Government is making sustained efforts to promote tourism while working towards making Himachal Pradesh a self-reliant State.
Congratulating the organisers, Sh. Sukhu said that the workshop was not merely about infrastructure development but about shaping a safe, resilient and inclusive future for Himachal Pradesh. He expressed confidence that the deliberations and recommendations emerging from the workshop would contribute significantly to future policy formulation.
The Chief Minister released the report titled “Towards Resilient Himachal Pradesh: Lessons and Recommendations from the 2023 and 2025 Hydro-Meteorological Disasters” on this occasion. He also launched the Himachal Social Impact Assessment Management System (SIAU Portal), stating that the portal would strengthen data-driven decision-making, improve inter-departmental coordination and enhance administrative efficiency in the State.
Vice Chairman, State Disaster Management Authority, Deepak Rathore said that the Western Himalaya was an ecologically fragile region where disasters have significantly increased in recent years. He stressed the need to move beyond conventional development models by integrating disaster resilience into infrastructure planning, strengthening early warning systems, continuously monitoring vulnerable glacial lakes and developing separate engineering standards for mountain regions. He also underscored the importance of public awareness in disaster risk reduction.
Chief Secretary K.K. Pant said that climate change has emerged as a major challenge. The disasters of 2023 and 2025 caused extensive damage to infrastructure and resulted in the loss of precious lives. He said that the Government’s objective was not merely to reconstruct damaged infrastructure but to build resilient infrastructure capable of withstanding future climate challenges. He also emphasized the importance of institutional capacity building for effective disaster management.
Former Member of NITI Aayog Dr. V.K. Paul said that while Himachal Pradesh has always faced unique developmental challenges due to its terrain, the impacts of global warming have further intensified these challenges. He called for a multi-dimensional policy approach involving all stakeholders, stating that disaster resilience cannot be achieved by any single department or institution alone. Referring to the 2023 disaster as a wake-up call, he said that timely and decisive action was essential to develop resilient infrastructure and minimize future loss of life and property.
Secretary to the Chief Minister Rakesh Kanwar, Centre Head, Chintan Research Foundation, Debojit Palit, Director HIPA Rupali Thakur, senior officers and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.
