State to file affidavit on rescue operation

The Supreme Court on Wednesday told the Uttarakhand government to file an affidavit on the completion of rescue operation in the flood-ravaged area of the state even as the latter said it was focussing on the rehabilitation of the affected people.

A bench of Justices A K Patnaik and F M I Kalifullah asked the state government to file an affidavit as PIL petitioner Ajay Bansal controverted the government’s assertion that the rescue operation was over.

“The state government claims that the rescue operation is over and immediate relief has been granted to the people. This is disputed. We call upon the Uttarakhand government to file an affidavit indicating therein that the rescue operation is over,” the bench said.

The court gave the state government time till July 10 to file the affidavit and fixed the matter for further hearing for July 12.

Delhi-based advocate Bansal had cited media reports stating that about 70,000 visitors were stranded following the natural calamity on June 16 in the state. Thousands of people are reported to have perished in the disaster.