People gather near a collapsed house after a major earthquake in Kathmandu in Nepal on April 25, 2015. (Reuters)
The Maharashtra government has been able to get information about 400 people from the state stranded in Nepal following a massive earthquake there and they are safe, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said today.
"From the phone calls that we have received, it has been learnt that there are approximately 1,200 people from Maharashtra stranded in Nepal. For now, we have information of about 400 of them. We are constantly receiving updates. All of them are safe and there is no adverse news," Mr Fadnavis told PTI.
The details of people of the state rescued from the bordering country will only be available by evening, once they are brought back to India, he said.
"I will inform about the exact number of people from Maharashtra once these flights land by evening. We are also providing train tickets to those who are in need so that they can reach their homes. We have also arranged free boarding and lodging for them in Maharashtra Sadan (in Delhi). An adequate number of vehicles have also been deployed at the (Delhi) airport," he said.
Meanwhile, an official from Mantralaya said that the sales tax officials who were touring Nepal are safe and that the state government is coordinating continuously with the Ministry of External Affairs and other government departments in the rescue operation.
Over 2,000 people have been killed in a devastating temblor yesterday in Nepal, the worst earthquake in over 80 years in the Himalayan nation.