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More than 34,000 people have been evacuated from the flood-hit areas of Uttarakhand so far.
NEW DELHI: Days after Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh were ravaged by torrential rains, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said today that over 207 people have been killed and more than 50,000 are still to be evacuated from flood hit areas.
The home minister after a meeting with members of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said: "We have evacuated more than 34,000 people. Some 49,000-50,000 people are still stranded."
"The figure of the death toll so far is 207, but more people could be buried in the debris," Shinde said.
The minister said the official casualty figures would be available by the evening, as communication channels had been destroyed by the floods and transmission of information to Delhi was taking time.
Added that two cloud bursts in the area caused the disaster, Shinde said a committee was being formed, under the stewardship of former home secretary and NDMA member VK Duggal, to coordinate the rescue effort.
But that was enough to pacify angry kins of those trapped in the state as they blocked roads in Dehradun and and scuffled with the police, while protesting against the state government for the delay in taking effective steps to rescue the flood victims.
Thousands of houses have been swept away in the flash floods and authorities are using helicopters to evacuate people and drop essential food supplies.
Army helicopters with food and medicines landed near Kedarnath temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple is intact but the shops and homes near the temple are badly damaged.
Pilgrimage authorities have indicated that the visit to the temple town would be stopped until the situation returns back to normal.
Uttarakhand Agriculture Minister Harak Singh Rawat who visited the Kedarnath area, said that it would take at least five years for the situation to normalise in Kedarnath.
The minister also added that: 'There are around 8,000-,10,000 people stuck in Gaurikund. We have made arrangements to bring down the elderly and the sick. The army and ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) are trying to bring down the rest by holding ropes.'
He said 2,000 people have been brought down by the ITBP and army Friday.
Over 34,000 pilgrims and tourists have so far been evacuated from different parts of the flood-affected areas mostly from Rudraprayag, Tehri, Uttarkashi and Pithoragarh Districts.
Army, ITBP and National Disaster Response Force have launched one of the biggest human rescue operations.
Nearly 14,000 people are believed to be missing and another 50,000 are stranded.
Helipads being built to speed up rescue in Uttarakhand
Dubbed as the biggest rescue operation in India, the rescue teams are focusing on evacuating people stuck in the jungles between Kedarnath and Gaurikund and more helipads were being built.
Addressing a press conference, Chadha said the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the National Disaster Response Force teams were trying to set up a small helipad in Rambada, near Kedarnath, to enable choppers to land and evacuate people.
"We are trying to evacuate people and trying to create a helipad to help people stuck in the jungles in Kedarnath and Gaurikund," Chadha said at a press conference.
The rescue teams were trying to create more roads to evacuate people as roads have been washed away, he added.
Days after Uttarakhand deluge, 50,000 still stranded
NEW DELHI: Days after Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh were ravaged by torrential rains, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said today that over 207 people have been killed and more than 50,000 are still to be evacuated from flood hit areas.
The home minister after a meeting with members of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said: "We have evacuated more than 34,000 people. Some 49,000-50,000 people are still stranded."
"The figure of the death toll so far is 207, but more people could be buried in the debris," Shinde said.
The minister said the official casualty figures would be available by the evening, as communication channels had been destroyed by the floods and transmission of information to Delhi was taking time.
Added that two cloud bursts in the area caused the disaster, Shinde said a committee was being formed, under the stewardship of former home secretary and NDMA member VK Duggal, to coordinate the rescue effort.
But that was enough to pacify angry kins of those trapped in the state as they blocked roads in Dehradun and and scuffled with the police, while protesting against the state government for the delay in taking effective steps to rescue the flood victims.
Thousands of houses have been swept away in the flash floods and authorities are using helicopters to evacuate people and drop essential food supplies.
Army helicopters with food and medicines landed near Kedarnath temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple is intact but the shops and homes near the temple are badly damaged.
Pilgrimage authorities have indicated that the visit to the temple town would be stopped until the situation returns back to normal.
Uttarakhand Agriculture Minister Harak Singh Rawat who visited the Kedarnath area, said that it would take at least five years for the situation to normalise in Kedarnath.
The minister also added that: 'There are around 8,000-,10,000 people stuck in Gaurikund. We have made arrangements to bring down the elderly and the sick. The army and ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) are trying to bring down the rest by holding ropes.'
He said 2,000 people have been brought down by the ITBP and army Friday.
Over 34,000 pilgrims and tourists have so far been evacuated from different parts of the flood-affected areas mostly from Rudraprayag, Tehri, Uttarkashi and Pithoragarh Districts.
Army, ITBP and National Disaster Response Force have launched one of the biggest human rescue operations.
Nearly 14,000 people are believed to be missing and another 50,000 are stranded.
Helipads being built to speed up rescue in Uttarakhand
Dubbed as the biggest rescue operation in India, the rescue teams are focusing on evacuating people stuck in the jungles between Kedarnath and Gaurikund and more helipads were being built.
Addressing a press conference, Chadha said the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the National Disaster Response Force teams were trying to set up a small helipad in Rambada, near Kedarnath, to enable choppers to land and evacuate people.
"We are trying to evacuate people and trying to create a helipad to help people stuck in the jungles in Kedarnath and Gaurikund," Chadha said at a press conference.
The rescue teams were trying to create more roads to evacuate people as roads have been washed away, he added.
Days after Uttarakhand deluge, 50,000 still stranded
