14 killed in heavy rains in Uttarakhand; Kedarnath Yatra halted

Dehradun: Fourteen people died and 10 more were injured in heavy overnight rains that triggered flooding and a house collapse as several rivers swelled in Uttarakhand, officials said. They said that the Kedarnath Yatra was suspended amid the inclement weather conditions as the heavy downpour triggered landslides at many places. The trek route remains blocked by boulders at Ghoraparav, Lincholi, Badi Lincholi and Bhimbali, the officials added.

In an official statement, the Uttarakhand government said the Centre has dispatched two Indian Air Force helicopters, a Chinook and an MI 17, to aid rescue operations in the state after the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) took stock of the situation in the wake of the intense showers.

Three aviation turbine fuel tankers have also been sent, it said, adding that the PMO has assured Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami of all necessary assistance. BJP president JP Nadda also reviewed the situation, the statement said.

According to information received from the State Emergency Operation Centre here, a child was swept away in a flooded drain in Nainitial's Haldwani. It said a search was on to find him. Due to heavy rains on Wednesday night, a stretch of road was washed away in Bhimbali on the Gaurikund-Kedarnath trek route with big stones coming down from the hill and blocking the road.

So far, 425 pilgrims have been brought to safety in helicopters from Lincholi and Bhimbali, while 1,100 pilgrims have reached Sonprayag on foot from various places with the help of rescue teams, according to police. Officials said 14 people have died in rain-related incidents since Wednesday evening -- four in Dehradun, six in Haridwar, three in Tehri and one in Chamoli.

Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Singh said two people drowned in a canal in the Raipur area on Wednesday night. He said that the bodies had been recovered. The victims were identified as Sundar Singh and Arjun Singh Rana. In another incident in Dehradun, two people were swept away while bathing in a river in spate near the Sahasradhara parking on Thursday.

On receiving the information, an SDRF team reached the spot but by then, local people had recovered one body. The SDRF recovered a second body from the river later. The deceased were residents of Sultanpuri in Delhi -- Indrapal (40) and Bhupendra Singh Rana (43).

In Bharpur village of the Roorkee area of Haridwar district, a house collapsed due to heavy rains, killing four people and injuring 10 others. The condition of eight of them is said to be critical. In another incident, two people were electrocuted at the Roorkee bus stand around 11:30 pm on Wednesday.

Three members of a family -- Bhanu Prasad (50), his wife Neelam Devi (45) and son Vipin (28) -- were killed in a landslide that damaged their roadside restaurant following a cloudburst in Jakhanyali village of Tehri district's Ghansali area, the officials said. Vipin was rescued but died while being taken to the AIIMS in Rishikesh, Tehri District Disaster Management Officer Brijesh Bhatt said.

A woman died in Kunkhet village of Gairsain tehsil of Chamoli district when debris from the hill fell on a house on Wednesday. In Haldwani of Nainital district, a seven-year-old child was swept away in a flooded drain. Police and the SDRF are searching for him.

According to information received from the meteorological department, Dehradun recorded 172 mm of rain since Wednesday, Haridwar's Roshanabad 210 mm, Raiwala 163 mm, Haldwani 140 mm, Roorkee 112 mm, Narendra Nagar 107 mm, Dhanolti 98 mm, Chakrata 92 mm and Nainital 89 mm. Chief Minister Dhami has asked officials to remain alert.

In a post on social media, Dhami said that due to the heavy rains in the state on Wednesday night, life was reported to be affected at many places and rescue teams carried out operations throughout the night and took people to a safe place. Dhami reached the State Emergency Operations Centre here and reviewed the rain situation and directed Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman to maintain coordination with the District Magistrates.

Meanwhile, an advisory has been issued for Kedarnath-bound pilgrims who have reached Rudraprayag, asking them to wait where they are until they are officially intimated about an improvement in the weather and restoration of the blocked and breached roads. Both Mandakini and Alaknanda rivers in Rudraprayag district are flowing close to the danger mark.

51 pilgrims from Madhya Pradesh airlifted

A total of 61 people from Badarwas town in Shivpuri district went for the Char Dham pilgrimage tour in Uttarakhand by bus and other four-wheelers. They got stranded in Kedarnath following a landslide.

Madhya Pradesh government on Thursday airlifted 51 people of the state from Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhand with the help of the hill state authorities and brought them to Rudraprayag, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said. "As soon as we got information about them, we immediately contacted Uttarakhand government and airlifted 51 out of the total 61 stranded persons through a helicopter to Rudraprayag,” Yadav said.

The remaining persons are safe in Kedarnath, and the state government is in contact with the Uttarakhand government on the matter, he said. Yadav said that his government will ensure that pilgrims won’t suffer during pilgrimage tours. This incident took place because of rain, but all of them are safe.

(Inputs from PTI)