Two thousand pilgrims, tourists stuck between Sonprayag and Kedarnath due to landslides at nine points, 16 died, several houses swept away and red alert issued in Uttarakhand

PRAKHAR MISHRA with SUNIL NEGI

In Garhwal Uttarakhand the excessive monsoon rains has lead to massive landslides in several areas with two or more villages literally swept away in Tehri Garhwal two days ago.

The natural calamity and the torrential rains have created havoc in entire Uttarakhand especially in Garhwal region where about two thousand or more people, pilgrims, tourists with their family members are stuck for several hours with no immediate sign to easy relief.

From Rudraprayag to Kedarnath the traffic and people’s movement have been blocked due to massive landslides with main highway roads on several points literally wiped away. About two thousand people are held up between Sonprayag and Kedarnath.

However, the NDRF, SDRF, local police and administration is relentlessly busy in ensuring the safe passage of stuck pilgrims, tourists etc through different safest methods like through ropes or UTI ther means.

The landslides are so massive having wiped out the roads to such an extent that it is for sure that Border Roads Organisation’s dexterous jawans n engineering staff will have to really do tremendous hard work of several days. It is said that after the massive deluge of 2013 June in Kedarnath this is a send largest and most dangerous flash floods/ heavy torrential rains that the roads have been badly damaged on nine portions from Son Prayag to Kedarnath with more than two thousand people stuck with their respective lives in danger.

The SDRF, NDRF and other agencies of ge state n central government are trying their level best in war footing to supply food materials and water including medicines to the stranded people and trying to ensure their safe passages as well.

The cloud burst incidents , excessive monsoon rains and subsequent landslides at several places have wiped out two villages in Tehri Garhwal including roads at several points in entire Uttarakhand including at nine places from Sonprayag to Kedarnath. So far there are reports of 16 people having died in these ecological catastrophes.

The chief minister Uttarakhand Pushkar Singh Dhami has personally visited the coid burst affected villages and areas in Tehri Garhwal and st other places assuring that an amount of Rs.316 crores for the relief and rehabilitation of the displaced people have been allocated.
The Chief Minister himself is looking into the matter by personally reaching many places along with aerial survey and all DMs and SDMs including top police officers have been instructed to remain on the spot.
The problem is only one thing, still the weather department says that the coming 48 hours are heavy in terms of weather, that is why the security forces along with SDRF and NDRF are continuously airlifting the passengers by Chinook helicopter to reach safe places as soon as possible. The prime minister, union home minister and the national party chiefs are personally monitoring the situation and have assured of all possible help in this hour of crisis said the Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. The Ukhand CM thanked prime minister Narendra Modi and defence minister Rajnath Singh for commencing the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operation in the calamity hit areas and also deploying Chinook and Mi-17 V5 helicopters at Gauchar, Rudraprayag, Chamoli Garhwal by the Indian Air Force. Certainly this has accelerated the rescue operations in disaster affected areas. Rescue operations are being carried out on war footing by our brave soldiers. So far, more than 5000 people have been safely evacuated to a safe place claimed the chief minister of Uttarakhand.