Rescue operations are in full swing by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and state disaster response forces in Uttarakhand as 150 persons are missing and three dead bodies have been recovered. Many are feared trapped inside the Tapovan tunnel, with ITBP personnel using mountaineering equipment to rescue them.
ITBP officials told The WEEK that they have been able to track the presence of around 16 persons inside the Tapovan tunnel.
“We have been able to talk to some of the people trapped inside the Tapovan tunnel. They are in constant touch with us. The rescue operations are going on,” said the ITBP official.
In the meantime, Home Minister Amit Shah who was in Maharashtra, is returning to the national capital on Sunday in the wake of the disaster.
ITBP officials said the 150 missing persons could have been washed away as they are untraceable since the flash flood occurred in river Rishi Ganga due to falling of glacier in the river around 10.45 am which led to exponential increase in the volume of water.
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There is a NTPC project on river Dhauli Ganga near Tapovan and it is learnt the entire project is devastated, said officials. Two Jhulla bridges connecting villages on the other side of river have also been washed away. ITBP sources said due to bridge destruction at near Rainy village, the connectivity of the ITBP border outposts has also been restricted.
More than 100 labourers at barge and more than 50 inside the tunnel are learnt to be feared dead as per the site in-charge of Tapovan NTPC work site, said an ITBP statement.
Three bridges at Reni village including and big bridge of BRO are affected.
While two bodies were recovered at Tapovan NTPC site, one more body was recovered at Chamtoli village near Tapovan.
The first team of ITBP, comprising 250 personnel, have reached the site along with three teams of the state departments at Auli who are carrying out rescue operations on the site.
The ITBP personnel are digging to open Tapovan Tunnel which is completely blocked due to debris, said official sources. They fear many are trapped inside the tunnel and rescue operations are on.
Due to this the Rishi Ganga, hydro project near Raini village was completely devastated, said the ITBP sources. The bridge constructed by the Border Roads Organisation on Joshimath highway was also completely washed away.
“There were six graziers with their livestock and they were also taken away by flash-flood,” said the ITBP Spokesperson.
Rishiganga meets Dhauli Ganga near Raini. This is is the reason why Dhauli Ganga also got flooded and nearly six houses of the village also got washed away.