Dehradun/New Delhi:
The Uttarakhand government has said that it did everything it could in its evacuation efforts after the weather department had issued a warning on heavy rains in the state. Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna held a high-level meeting on the tragedy today.
Here are the 10 latest developments in the story:
The state's weather department has said it had urged the government to move out people to safer areas, warning of heavy rains. According to Uttarakhand Met Department's Director Anand Sharma, the government had also been advised to postpone the Char Dham Yatra by four days. (Read)
Uttarakhand's Minister for Disaster Management Yashpal Arya said that the warning was issued two days before the rains came and the government "did everything to handle the situation at that time."
Superintendent of Police in Rudraprayag Birenderjeet Singh told NDTV that the authorities took crucial action in a brief time. "We warned pilgrims not to go to the Kedarnath shrine, and in the wake of the devastation, we took many pilgrims to shelter in the temple, saving thousands of lives," he told NDTV.
Yesterday, Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal said that the death toll in the state could go upto 10,000. Later, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna said that the figure was inaccurate. "We will never know the exact number of those dead and the number of people who have been buried or washed away," Mr Bahuguna told PTI today.
200 more pilgrims were evacuated today from Badrinath to Joshimath in five choppers. The government claimed that only 500 more people remain to be rescued from there. Officials said evacuation from Badrinath may be over by today if weather permits.
According to the NDMA, roads between Badrinath and Rambara, Joshimath and Govindghat and Kund and Chamoli via Okhimath and Chopta have been repaired and opened for vehicular traffic. However, roads connecting Guptkashi and Gaurikund as well as Uttarkashi and Gangotri are yet to be opened.
Over one lakh people have been rescued so far from the state in heroic efforts led by the Army and the Air Force. But over 3000 are still missing, while more than 1,000 are still stranded. (Full coverage)
According to an interim report, the state has also suffered a loss of Rs 700-800 crore in the floods, Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar said.
Air Force will begin a partial de-induction of its choppers from July 2 although an adequate strength will remain in the state for rehabilitation work.
A team of experts from the Archaeological Survey of India will survey the 1,000-year-old temple at Kedarnath - one of the four pilgrimage centres in the state - to assess the extent of damage to the shrine and prepare a roadmap for restoration work. (Read)
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