India, July 16 -- A major landslide occurred near Shillai town in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district on Wednesday, blocking the Hatkoti-Paonta Sahib stretch of National Highway (NH) 707, officials said.

Hours after a huge part of the hillside came crashing down, restoration efforts began but debris falling from the hillside obstructed work, they said.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), a total of 258 roads, including NH 707, were closed in the state on Wednesday.

The maximum number of 140 blocked roads are in Mandi district followed by 55 in Sirmaur and 35 in Kullu.

As many as 171 water-supply schemes and 151 power distribution transformers were also affected after heavy rain in the hill state.

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