Uttarkashi cloud burst and floods: 150 rescued, 11 army troops missing, says NDRF

Bad weather has so far prevented two National Disaster Response Force teams from being airlifted from Dehradun, an NDRF officer said.

New Delhi: About 150 people have been rescued from Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi, struck by flash floods a day ago, even as 11 army troops remain missing, an NDRF officer said on Wednesday. 

Deputy Inspector General (Operations) Mohsen Shahedi told reporters that three teams of the federal contingency force were en route to the Dharali village, but were delayed as the Rishikesh-Uttarkashi highway is blocked due to landslides. 

Bad weather has so far prevented two National Disaster Response Force teams from being airlifted from Dehradun, he said.

Shahedi said that as per reports received by the NDRF, the army, ITBP, and the SDRF teams are undertaking rescue operations in the affected area and have rescued about 150 people.  

"We have been told that four people have been killed and about 50 are missing. Eleven army troops are missing from the Harsil area," he said. 

Three teams of the NDRF are very close to the affected areas, and they will reach as soon as the route clears, the DIG said. Shahedi said around 2 pm on Tuesday, flash floods triggered by a cloudburst hit Uttarkashi villages.  

A lake has formed in the higher area, but it is safe as the water is receding, he said. 

Meanwhile, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police said they have rescued 413 pilgrims who were stranded on the Kinner Kailash Yatra route in the state. 

A large part of the trekking path was washed away, and the pilgrims were rescued through the rope-based traverse crossing technique, an ITBP spokesperson said.