Dehradun:
Heavy rain is expected in Uttarakhand over the next three days, the Met department has warned. Nearly 15,000 people remain stranded in remote parts of the state, though many have been accommodated in make-shift camps supervised by the Army and the Air Force. Despite the deteriorating weather, the Air Force said yesterday in a powerfully-worded statement that operations will not stop.
Here are the 10 latest developments:
1000 people were air-lifted yesterday in parts where the rain was not heavy enough to ground military helicopters.
5,000 pilgrims are stranded in and around the holy town of Badrinath; they remain inaccessible, but some are now being supervised by Army officers who have reached them by foot. (See pics)
Hundreds of people, who have been rescued, are walking to a major Army base camp 30 km near Rudraprayag. But this area received heavy rain through the day yesterday, and overnight landslides blocked off a major route, key for evacuations both on foot and by road.
1400 people are waiting to be air-lifted from Harsil, which is 240 km from Haridwar. "There are people stranded in Badrinath and Harsil but they are being looked after," said Uttarakhand's Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna. "All the arrangements of food and water are made. As soon as the weather permits, they will be evacuated," he said.
It has been nine days since Uttarakhand was ravaged by rain and landslides. With more rain expected now, Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne reassured the nation with this statement: "Our helicopter rotors will not stop churning till such time as we get each one of you out. Hang in there, don't lose hope." (Read: Don't lose hope, help coming, says Air Force)
670 people are reported dead so far. Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde told reporters in Delhi today that the death toll may cross the 1,000 mark after the debris is cleared. Officials warn many more bodies are yet to be pulled out from isolated areas that are completely cut-off.
Officials are planning a mass cremation in the town of Kedarnath, which was the epicentre of the disaster. There are concerns of an outbreak of disease from rotting bodies. The cremations will be held over the next few days and priests have been requested to participate in final rites. (Read: Pilgrim clung to bell at Kedarnath for nine hours, claims family)
A police official who is in charge of organising the mass cremations said that belongings and documents recovered from bodies will be catalogued to help identify them; DNA samples will also be collected.
80,000 people have been evacuated since torrential rain hit on June 15 in peak tourist season centred on a pilgrimage to four shrines in Uttarakhand.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs are being used to scan the thick jungles near Kedarnath, Bhairav Chatti and Jungle Chatti to locate stranded people. (Post your comments here for our brave soldiers)
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