CHANDIGARH, Punjab—With the arrival of the natural disaster in Uttarakhand in the form of cloudbursts, heavy rains, landslides and flooding, efforts have been intensified by the Indian army as well as the ITBP for the safety of thousands of pilgrims stranded in the areas of Badrinath, Kedarnath and Hemkunt Sahib. In the past few days the rescue operations have been able to rescue around 320,000 people whereas 50,000 people are still stuck and more than 500 are feared dead.
The Punjab Government, SGPC and DSGMC are providing their assistance in the disaster struck areas. Punjab Government has sent around 150 buses to Rishikesh, from where the devotees are being brought to Chandigarh. On June 21st buses carrying 100 devotees arrived safely at Chandigarh Sector 43. The CM has also requested the army forces to provide them with as many private helicopters as possible, on the expense of Punjab Government. An estimated of 600 devotees are still stranded at Gobind Dham who are expected to be evacuated soon.
The DSGMC has also sent 2 helicopters and 37 vehicles carrying relief material in the form of dry food, blankets, sleeping bags, raincoats, medicines, water and other necessary requirements to help the needy. Manjeet Singh GK who himself visited the area informed that the number of casualties is expected to increase due to the harsh weather conditions at high altitudes. Due to the lack of drinking water the pilgrims are forced to drink the rainy water from grounds which could lead to various diseases.
The Indian Army and Indian Air Force are collectively operating 37 helicopters, but technically a private helicopter cannot carry more than 14 passengers. Considering this, it would take many days to evacuate the entire area.
Although the returned devotees are grateful for the efforts made by the army, they also feel that the Uttarakhand government is to blame for not providing them with adequate help. They have alleged being charged 4 times the original price on food items as well as on the transport services.
