Indian Air Force choppers are carrying tonnes of relief material to distribute in the villages in earthquake-hit Nepal
Indian Air Force helicopters are rescuing people from the remotest parts of western Nepal, difficult to reach and among the worst affected by Saturday's earthquake that has killed over 4,000 people.
NDTV accompanied one such Air Force rescue mission to two villages in the Dhanding district, near China. Landing in this terrain is a challenge, made more difficult by inclement weather in Nepal over the last few days.
Entire villages have been flattened by the powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake. In these two small villages, 300 people are dead.
The IAF choppers are carrying tonnes of relief material - tents, noodles, medicines and water - neatly packaged in white parcels to distribute in the villages.
As they land, personnel of the Nepalese army take over the relief material.
In the meantime, vehicles of the Nepalese Red Cross ferry the most critically injured to the Indian helicopters, to be airlifted to base camp for treatment.
A woman with stitches on her forehead and injured hands, another with arm fractures, a small boy who seemed to have hurt his head, were among about a dozen people brought back on the IAF chopper from the two villages.
Aid has been slow to reach many of the most vulnerable, and people have been critical of the Nepal government, which is overwhelmed by the colossal tragedy and the humanitarian crisis that confronts it.
While foreign countries, with India leading in efforts, have brought in relief material, chaotic scenes at Kathmandu's main international airport have slowed the flow of aid.
The situation is worse in remote rural areas. Highways have been blocked by landslides, and many villages and communities are without water and electricity, surviving on salvaged food and with no outside help.
In Kathmandu, thousands of residents spent a third night outside in tattered makeshift tents, too rattled by aftershocks to go back to their homes, many of which have been extensively damaged by Saturday's quake.