Shimla, Jul 10 (IANS): The Shimla-Chandigarh National Highway 5 was blocked on Monday after a major landslide occurred in Himachal Pradesh’s Solan district, police said.

“The highway was blocked at Datyar and so are alternative routes. To and fro movement of the traffic has stopped. Restoration will take at least five hours,” acting Director General of Police Satwant Atal said.

Also due to heavy rain, the crucial bridge was damaged on the National Highway 105, linking Pinjore with Baddi, hampering the movement of the traffic.

In the industrial Parwanoo town located along the Chandigarh-Shimla highway, vehicles were washed away in a mudslide.

Rail traffic on the Kalka-Shimla track, a world heritage site in Himachal Pradesh, will remain suspended till Tuesday owing to mudslides on tracks following heavy rainfall, officials said.

“Traffic on the rail line has been suspended on Monday and Tuesday due to slides, water logging and debris on the tracks. Work on clearing the muck is on,” a senior railway official told IANS.

Landslides were also reported at several places along the tracks in Solan district, some 65 km from the state capital.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Sukhu said torrential monsoon rains have claimed 17 lives in the state and the damage to property is estimated at over Rs 3,000 crore.