Uttarakhand: 207 dead, 13,000 missing, 50,000 still stranded

As search, rescue and relief operations in flood and landslide-ravaged Uttarakhand entered their fourth day today, the official death toll rose to 207. But the union home ministry admitted that as many as 13,000 remain missing – and since a large number of these can be considered dead, the toll is likely to multiply exponentially.

A total of 33,192 people, stranded for a week – many of them tourists or pilgrims – have so far been rescued in mammoth multi-agency rescue and relief operation, but over 50,000 still remain trapped or missing in the hills.

Almost everyone from the worst-hit pilgrimage town of Kedarnath – at an altitude of almost 14,000 ft – has been rescued. The extent of damage around the Kedarnath temple has been huge. The number of people who have died in Kedarnath is not yet clear.

Today, the focus of the rescue efforts will be on Gaurikund and Rambara - more than 5,000 people are believed to be trapped in this narrow valley.

"We remained hungry for four days. We were very worried. Nobody helped. We were helping each other out but there wasn't any help from the government. Today we got some help and protection. Our children died there out of hunger," said a rescued Kedarnath survivor.

Evacuations are expected to continue for another week, while air operations will continue for three more days. The Sonprayag-Rudraprayag and the Uttarkashi-Rishikesh roads have now been reopened.

A major portion of the 28 km road leading to Badrinath, another major pilgrimage site high in the Garhwal mountains, has been washed away, with over 7,000 people still trapped in the town. After completing evacuation in Kedarnath, the rescuers' next big challenge is going to be Badrinath.

Uttarakhand government sources say over 3,000 people are still trapped near Ghangaria, a village on the way to the Sikh shrine of Hemkund Sahib. So far, only four helicopters are operating in the area for rescue operations.

The search, rescue and relief operations are being carried out with the help of helicopters and personnel from the Army, Air Force, National Defence Relief Force (NDRF), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the Uttarakhand government, and voluntary organisations.

The defence ministry said that the Army had deployed 8,100 soldiers, including medical teams, engineer task forces and signal detachment. Ten specialised Army mountaineering teams were also pressed into service in the Kedarnath-Soumang area.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna said the casualties could run into several hundreds, and a clear picture will emerge only when areas become accessible after waters recede.

ITBP chief Ajay Chadha, who has 1,000 men involved in relief work in Uttarakhand, told reporters in Delhi that the worst affected Kedarnath temple area has been evacuated of people, but there could still be about 400-500 people in the upper reaches. He said the Army will launch operations today to bring these people down. 

IBN reported sources in the Uttarakhand government as saying close to 1,100 small and big roads in the state have been damaged and at places, roads have completely been washed away.

Its sources also told the channel that 94 bridges have been washed away and in Rudraprayag alone, 26 bridges have been washed away. Sources say it may take around 2 to 3 years to make completely recovery.