As widespread destruction hit Uttarkashi following a cloudburst, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who is personally overseeing rescue and relief
operations, visited landslide victims on Friday. In an emotional video that has emerged from one such visit, Dhami can be seen consoling a woman, assuring her that she is safe now. "We have come here, please don't worry. Everyone is safe now. People will come to take you. Do not cry, you have to be strong. We will help you reach back safely," the Uttarakhand CM can be heard telling that woman. The Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) said more than 800 rescue personnel drawn from the Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and police are engaged in the rescue operations on the ground.
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Uttarkashi landslide
A massive cloudburst struck Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district on Tuesday, triggering devastating flash floods in Dharali village. According to official data, 128 people were rescued by Friday noon. With this, a total of 566 people have been rescued since Tuesday, when torrents of mud swallowed homes, hotels and cars. Officials have said four people were killed in the flash floods. Two bodies were recovered on Wednesday. The USDMA said 16 people, including nine Army personnel and seven civilians, are missing.
According to residents of nearby villages, like Mukhba, who witnessed the disaster, the number of missing is likely to be higher as locals and labourers from Bihar and Nepal were working at under-construction hotels and there were guests in about two dozen big hotels in Dharali when the disaster struck.
(With PTI inputs)
