Army increases footprint, steps up operation

As reports of deteriorating weather in rain-ravaged Uttarakhand trickled in, Army Chief General Bikram Singh on Saturday said efforts have been stepped up to evacuate people stranded in the area as “time is limited”.

The Army has also increased its footprint to over 6,000 personnel from 500 for the operation.
Gen Singh said: “Time is limited. We have window till tomorrow because I have been told that weather might turn bad again but we are rushing our people there.

“Yesterday (On Friday) we landed our paratroopers. We are trying to reach even those areas where there is nobody at the moment just to ensure that in case if anybody is stuck, we will be able to get them out.”

Describing the flash floods and cloudbursts in Uttarakhand as “very sad and a big tragedy”, the Army chief said, “We have increased the Army’s footprint from 500 to over 6,000 at the moment”.

“It’s a time consuming effort because of rains, the roads are washed away. The accessibility is restricted but that not withstanding, we are doing our best because it is very important to save lives and important to ensure that we address aspirations of our countrymen,” he said.