Dehradun: Bad weather returned to Uttarakhand Monday with fresh spell of rains and landslips in the higher reaches of Chamoli and Rudraprayag districts grounding rescue operations by choppers in the state where 10,000 survivors are waiting to be evacuated.
Not a single chopper has so far been able to take off from Sahasradhara helipad to rescue stranded pilgrims at Badrinath and affected pockets adjacent to it.
The same is the situation in Guptkashi and Gauchar from where no helicopter has so far been able to take off because of a thick veil of mist enveloping the area and intermittent rains.
In Delhi, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the death toll in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand may cross the reported 1,000 mark after the debris is cleared.
Retd Wing Commander Capt R S Brar, who has been entrusted with the task of overseeing air rescue operations in the affected areas, told PTI, “About 5000 people are yet to be evacuated from Badrinath and not even a single chopper has so far been able to take off from Sahasradhara helipad here to rescue stranded pilgrims at the shrine and affected pockets adjacent to it.”
Reports from Chamoli and Pauri districts said it was raining in the higher reaches hampering chopper operations. Fresh landslips on Badrinath highway has also choked the route.
With inclement weather affecting chopper operations, the state government’s plans to launch a final combing operation in the worst-hit Kedarnath Valley in search of possible stranded pilgrims in pockets has also hit a roadblock.
However, official sources said an IAF chopper has been sent from Gauchar to Badrinath axis to assess the weather and find out whether it would be possible to resume rescue operations in the area where the majority of stranded pilgrims are located.
Superintendent of Police Rudraprayag Biranderjeet Singh said, “The roads are already fragile in some parts of the district. So, I have issued an advisory to tourists and other persons searching for their loved ones to leave for Rishikesh as soon as possible.”
Speaking about the rescue efforts when the flash floods hit the area, he said around 8000 lives were saved as all tourist police chowkis kept on announcing that there would be heavy rainfall and that they should try to avoid the yatra.
Kedarnath Valley, the temple town which was the epicentre of the floods and landslides, was on Sunday cleared of all stranded pilgrims in stepped up rescue operations.
The state’s Disaster Management Minister Yashpal Arya put the death toll at “at least 5,000”.
However, the official death toll as of Sunday was put at 680 while Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna said the death toll is likely to be around 1,000. (PTI)