From three pilgrims from Tamil Nadu’s Hosur to an Australia-based couple from Odisha holidaying in the Himalayan nation, scores of tourists from India remain missing in the aftermath of the Nepal flash flood on Thursday. Meanwhile, many of the survivors, including a group of footballers and their coach, have reported safe although a number of them remain stranded. Different state governments have released helplines for more information.
The Hosur pilgrims were among dozens of Tamil Nadu travellers whose whereabouts remained unknown till Thursday morning after a devastating flash flood struck a crucial border crossing between Nepal and Tibet on Wednesday.
The three were travelling with a 57-member group that left through a Kumbakonam-based agency on Sunday. Officials had confirmed that 20 members of the group were safe, but there was no verified information about the others.
Roopalakshmi, whose mother-in-law was among the pilgrims, said, “We haven’t received any details. All we know is that 57 members are stranded. We have come to know that 20 of them are safe. My mother-in-law’s name is not among them.” She said the telephone numbers broadcast as emergency helplines had elicited no response.
“None of those numbers are working,” Roopalakshmi said. “I really want the government to tell us how they are, where they are…”
The tour operator, she added, had also failed to provide clear information. Two other Hosur residents, Thimarayasamy and his wife, Mamtha, were part of the same pilgrimage, according to Thimarayasamy’s younger brother, Anand.
“We have been calling them since morning, but have been unable to connect at all,” Anand said.
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Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay said officials at Tamil Nadu House in New Delhi have been directed to work with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Indian Embassy in Nepal to locate, rescue and assist people from the state.
Separately, the Isha Foundation said it had lost contact with an 80-member international group returning from the Kailash Manasarovar pilgrimage. Founder Jaggi Vasudev said the group was believed to have reached an immigration building shortly before the flood struck.
“At 9.05 am., we received a message from Praveen, the Ishanga group leader, that they had reached the immigration office,” he said. “After that, this happened at 9:14 am.” Jaggi Vasudev said the building, where he himself had completed immigration procedures a week earlier, had been washed away.
“The entire group must have been in that building,” he said, adding that there had been no official confirmation of their fate. The group comprised 34 men and 46 women from more than 20 countries, including 22 from the United States, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia and nine from Britain. Jaggi Vasudev said embassies were being contacted and permission was being sought for him and a team to enter the affected area.
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Odisha
A couple from Odisha are among the hundreds missing in the flash flood. The couple, who had been staying in Australia for the past eight years, were on a holiday.
Odisha government sources said Sandeep Mohapatra and his wife Siddharthi Kumari Sahu reached Nepal on August 22. Their phone numbers are switched off.
“The couple’s last location was detected near the immigration centre when the flood struck, with no official information yet on their whereabouts. The authorities in Nepal said that the rescue operation is continuing,” said Pritish Panda, the nodal officer appointed by the state government to coordinate with authorities.
According to the couple’s family sources, they directly landed from Australia in Nepal on a 12-day holiday plan. They were scheduled to return to Odisha after the vacation.
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Panda said they are in constant touch with the MEA and The Indian Embassy in Nepal. A 24×7 Control Room (+91-7428135044/ 8527580245. Landline: 011-23012807) has been set up at Odisha Niwas, New Delhi to provide necessary assistance to persons from the state.
Several from Odisha are suspected to be stuck in the flood-hit region. These include a team of six football players from Odisha along with their coach who went to Nepal for a football match at Pokhara. According to the team’s coach Halim, all are safe.
Rakesh Kumar Panda, a native of Puri, along with two others who went to Nepal a week ago are reported safe. They have crossed Raxaul Post and returning to India, as per official sources.
Andhra Pradesh
Seven persons from Andhra Pradesh have been identified as stranded or missing in Nepal. Four have been traced and are safe and efforts are underway to locate three missing persons, said minister N Lokesh Naidu on Wednesday, adding that the government has launched efforts to search and bring them back.
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Officials of Real Time Governance Society (RTGS), who are monitoring the situation in Nepal, said that Bala Subramanyam from Kuppam in Chittoor district has been reported missing. Rajyalakshmi Nimmagadda, a member of Isha Foundation Group S3, is also missing. Sasi Kumar, also travelling with Isha Foundation Group S3, was last seen near the Gyirong border port.
Bhaskar Shastri and three others from Adoni and Kurnool have been confirmed to be safe but remain stranded. They were part of a 156-member group travelling to Kailash Mansarovar. Andhra Pradesh Bhavan and other departments have identified and are closely monitoring the cases of all seven residents of the state.
Lokesh said that Andhra Bhavan is in constant coordination with the Indian Embassy, Chinese Embassy, Nepalese Embassy, Gyirong Immigration Centre, Isha Foundation, RTGS Centre and MEA.
The AP Bhavan has issued an advisory requesting all stranded persons to remain in safe locations and maintain contact with the embassy. Families looking for missing persons may contact Nepal Tourism Police at 1144 and the concerned embassy/ reach out to AP Bhavan providing travel or transportation details and the person’s last known location.
AP Bhavan Emergency Control Room — New Delhi:
1. 011-23384016
2. 011-23387089
3. Whatsapp: 9059824101
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Kerala
As many as 53 people from the state, including a number of non-resident Keralites, have got stranded in Nepal.
NORKA ROOTS CEO Rajesh Madhavan said these persons, including children, are reportedly safe. “We could not establish direct links with all of them, but information available from their families in Kerala indicate that they are safe, but got stranded in various places. NORKA ROOTS office in Delhi is constantly in touch with the Indian Embassy for latest updates.”
NORKA ROOTS is the state government entity for the affairs of the non-resident Keralites. On Wednesday, after the tragedy struck Nepal, the state government had launched helpdesks at the CMO, NORKA ROOTS and the State Disaster Management Authority.
In a video shared by one of the groups, the 35-member team got stranded in a forest while moving by two mini buses to Pokhara city in Nepal.
