Uttarkashi Flood: Rescuers retrieve 1 body in flood-struck Dharali, PM Modi speaks to CM Dhami, offers help
Nearly half of the picturesque Dharali village was ravaged by flash floods on Tuesday afternoon. The village is the main stopover on the way to Gangotri, from where the Ganga originates, and is home to several hotels and home stays.
Four deaths have so far been confirmed in the flash flood, which followed a cloudburst. Around 130 people have been evacuated to safety, officials said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to get an update on the situation and assured him of the Centre's assistance.
Dhami held a meeting with officials at the State Emergency Operation Centre here to review the rescue efforts. He surveyed the flooded area in Dharali and Harsil from a helicopter. 'The rescue work is apace. Teams from the army, ITBP, and SDRF have reached the spot. Around 70-80 people have been rescued… Debris has reached an army base. A road has been blocked. The DM and an SP rank officer are on their way to the spot. It's a challenging situation as it is still raining there,' he told PTI Videos.
Dhami said arrangements have been made for medicines and food, and 160 police personnel have been deployed, 10 of them senior and three SP-rank, to oversee the disbursement of ration. Three nodal officers have been appointed from the CM's office.
'Every life matters to us,' the chief minister said. Home Secretary Shailesh Bagauli, quoting the ITBP, said that one body was retrieved from the flash flood site. The Indian Army has kept its MI-17 and Chinook helicopters on standby to look for the stranded. They will take off only after the weather clears. At least 60 people are said to have gone missing, but the number is likely higher, as many had gathered for the Har Dudh fair in Dharali village when the tragedy struck.
The missing include 11 soldiers, Defence spokesperson Lt Col Manish Shrivastava said. Colonel Harshvardhan, Commanding Officer of 14 Raj Rif, is leading the relief and rescue operations with a 150-soldier team.
Despite its soldiers going missing and its base being hit, the team is working with full courage and determination, Shrivastava said.
(With PTI Inputs)
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The Print
16 hours ago
- The Print
A ‘blast-like sound', then came the deluge. Uttarkashi's Dharali grapples with trail of devastation
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Panwar told ThePrint he had vegetable patches and apple orchards that were destroyed in the flash flood. Most of the fields were downhill, near the banks of the river. Now, only a few apple trees remain, his only source of income. 'The durability and quality of the vegetables we grow here is very good. They don't spoil easily. We grow potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, peas and rajma (kidney beans),' he said, adding that the damage to his vegetable patches is in excess of Rs 5 lakh. This part of Uttarkashi is famous for its Red Royal variety of apples. Panwar has decided to abandon the two-storey wood and cement house his grandfather built, now inundated with silt and debris. Although his family was evacuated by helicopter to Matli a day after the floods, he stayed back to gather what was left of their belongings. 'If another flood comes here, we won't be saved,' he said, adding that the village was struck by floods in 2013, 2017 and now in 2025. 'But at the time, it didn't do much damage. Now 50-60 people have lost their lives in the market area alone.' Panwar pointed to an area right next to his house where his uncle lived. The patch of land is now covered in silt and debris, showing no signs of the house that once stood there. Referring to his cousin, Panwar told ThePrint that he 'had gone to the market to get cooking supplies; they just recovered his body'. Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Deputy Inspector General Parminder Singh had told ThePrint earlier that the flash flood happened at about 1:30 pm on 5 August and personnel from ITBP reached Dharali by 4:30 pm the same day. In Pictures: A trail of debris, loss, feeble prayers—Scenes from Dharali, a village half buried under rubble 'It was like a blast-like sound' Most of the surviving villagers have moved to higher ground, setting up camp near the temple where the government has been storing rations. Local leaders are distributing bags of rice, potatoes, tea, cooking oil, shoes, mattresses and towels with the help of personnel from the ITBP and Uttarakhand police. Rajat Panwar was at this temple when the deluge came. 'It was like a blast-like sound. It strikes fear in my mind even now,' said Rajat, adding that he ran in the direction of higher ground and saw his family-owned hotel being submerged. 'I thought my immediate family members would drown, but they were safe. I lost some classmates and my aunt's son.' Having lost his hotel and apple orchards, he doesn't have any means to feed his family or build a roof over their heads. Choking back tears, he pleaded to the government—for shelter and a source of livelihood. 'In some families, people have lost the main earner. The government should give some sort of permanent employment, not necessarily a government job, to one person in each family, so at least the house can function.' 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2 Pregnant Women Rescued From Disaster-Hit Dharali, Relief Efforts Intensify
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Time of India
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