Himachal flash floods: Toll rises to 5; search on for missing 6

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) commandant Baljinder Singh said they are trying to trace five people who are feared to have been swept away from the project site during the floods.

Shimla/Dharamshala: With the recovery of three more bodies on Thursday from a hydro project site in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district that was hit by flash floods a day ago, the death toll has risen to five, officials said.

Search operations have been intensified to find the six persons still missing since flash floods triggered by cloudbursts hit Kangra and Kullu districts on Wednesday.

Two bodies were recovered on Wednesday.

The deceased have been identified as Chain Singh, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir, Aditya Thakur from Chamba, Sanjay from Nurpur, and Pardeep Verma and Chandan from Uttar Pradesh, Kangra SP Shalini Agnihotri said on Thursday.

Lovely from Chamba district, whom the search teams rescued from a forest near the project site, said there were 13 people in the camp, of which five ran towards the hills while the remaining were swept by the gushing waters.

"We saw the floods coming and screamed to alert the people below before running to safety," Daya Kishan, a labourer, said.

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Commandant Baljinder Singh said they are trying to trace the people who are feared to have been swept away from the project site during the floods.

Three more people are yet to be traced at Rehla Bihal in Kullu district.

About 15-20 workers were feared swept away at the makeshift labour colony near the Indira Priyadarshini Hydroelectric project site following a surge in the water level at Manuni Khad in Khaniyara village on Wednesday evening.

While some of the missing persons have been rescued, the authorities did not clarify the exact number of people saved.

NDRF's Singh said that joint search teams of NDRF, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police, and Home Guards are on the job, though the tough topography and bad weather have made the search operation difficult.

Another person who was last known to have fled to a nearby hill to save himself during the floods has been found, the officials said.

Some of the missing persons were from Nurpur and Chamba areas of Himachal Pradesh, while the others were from Uttar Pradesh, they said.

Expressing condolences to the bereaved families of the workers, BJP president J P Nadda said, "In this hour of crisis, every BJP worker is dedicated to providing all possible help to the citizens of Devbhoomi. I pray to God to give peace to the departed souls and provide strength to the bereaved families."

BJP MLA from Dharamshala Sudhir Sharma, who reached the spot on Thursday, said the project site was one km from his village.

He received a call on Wednesday that the water level had surged and 15-20 people had been swept away, Sharma said.

He claimed the building sheltered the labourers near a stream, and not shifting them to safer areas when the weather deteriorated pointed at negligence which should be probed.

Besides alleging lapses by the authorities in ensuring the safety of the workers, Sharma also raised serious concern about the negligence on the part of the contractor and the project officials.

He also claimed the actual damage to life and property was greater than what was being reported, and only the labour contractor can provide accurate information about the number of missing workers.

Meanwhile, officials said as of Wednesday night, around 250-275 workers were present at the site, all of whom have been provided temporary shelter at the Ambedkar Bhawan in Khaniyara.

The project work had been suspended due to rain, and the workers were resting in temporary shelters near the site when floodwaters from Manuni Khad and nearby drains diverted towards them, sweeping several away, the officials said.

Three people, including a 14-year-old, who were swept away in the deluge at Rehla Bihal in Kullu district, are still missing, and a search is going on to find them, they said.

Deputy Commissioner Torul S Ravesh said the NDRF has joined the rescue operation in Kullu, as she cautioned tourists to avoid going to the low-lying areas and riverbeds.

Flash floods were also reported from Manali and Banjar in the district and reports of some tourists stranded in remote areas of Kullu district due to blocking of roads have also poured in.

Heavy rains have caused massive damage in Sainj, Gadsa and Hornagad areas that come under the Banjar assembly constituency in Kullu.

Banjar MLA Surinder Shauri, who visited the affected places, said the main road is blocked in Hornagad, while electricity and water supply have been disrupted in the village.