Uttarakhand floods: Over 10,000 rescued today

NEW DELHI: In a mammoth multi-agency operation by defence forces in peacetime, over 10,000 people stranded in various upper reaches of Uttarakhand were today rescued while 22,000 still remain to be pulled out.

The personnel of Army, Air Force, ITBP, BRO and NDRF raced against time as the weather office predicted fresh rains on Monday and Tuesday. A total of 70,000 persons have been evacuated till date.

Fresh sets of satellite phones were sent to the rain-ravaged state to allow people communicate with their families and to enable the personnel of various agencies communicate with each other.

While 25 satellite phones were provided to ITBP, IAF, BRO and NDRF, 50 more sets are expected to reach Delhi from Congo tonight, ITBP's DIG (Operations) Austin Eapen said.

According to the latest figures provided by the state government to the National Crisis Management Committee at 4.00 pm today, 557 people have died in the unfolding tragedy, while 412 have been injured. "These figures are tentative...its is an ongoing operation," Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari told reporters here.

Responding to suggestions about lack of coordination between agencies, he said while there could be operational difficulties, there is no lack of coordination. "The coordination is harmonious and seamless," he said.

He agreed that there could be problems in distributing food to the needy given the size and nature of the calamity.

In Kedarnath, the NDRF personnel have identified 83 bodies which have been handed over to the local police.

"The weather today was like yesterday. It was not as good as we expected...it is likely to stabilise. But we expect rains on Monday and Tuesday. We expect 3 to 4 cm of rain," Air Marshal S B Deo, IAF's chief of Air Operrations said.