An avalanche hit a Border Roads Organisation (BRO) project site near Mana — India’s “first” village — in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, trapping several workers and prompting a rescue operation that involved multiple agencies. By Friday evening, 33 of 55 trapped workers had been declared safe, officials said. The incident took place between Mana village and Mana Pass, near the Indo-Tibetan border. An officer of the BRO said the employees had been hired by a contractor for the construction of a road near Mana village. However, officials said poor visibility and snowstorm were slowing operations, which currently involve the Army’s Garhwal 9 Brigade, the ITBP, and the BRO. Additionally, four NDRF teams have been sent as reinforcements from Rudraprayag, Haridwar, and Dehradun. The SDRF, too, is expected to join the operations, although the weather is preventing them from reaching the site, officials said. “It’s a bad situation, and the weather is exacerbating it. We have been informed that a snowstorm is making operations even more difficult,” State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) Commandant Arpan Yaduvanshi told The Indian Express. “An additional team of the SDRF is on alert at Sahastradhara. They are well-equipped and belong to the high-altitude special team. We all have the exact coordinates. But the weather is causing problems.” Initially, it was believed that 57 workers were at the site. However, after a review meeting with officers of the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA), Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the number of people there was 55. “There were 57 labourers at the site, but two had gone on leave. So far, we have managed to bring to safety 33 of them and search remains for 22 workers. Every agency is engaged in finding them,” he said. According to the authorities, workers from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, J&K, Himachal Pradesh, apart from Uttarakhand, were engaged in the road work. The missing workers are yet to be identified. The Army, which is part of the rescue operations, told The Indian Express that of the 33 who have been declared safe, 22 had managed to escape on their own and were in Badrinath. Meanwhile, the SDMA has sent a letter to the Indian Air Force seeking the deployment of MI-17 helicopters. Preparations are being made to use the ITBP helipad in Mana for aerial rescue, the authority said. “Additionally, heliports in Joshimath, Ravigram, and Govindghat are being readied, while five ambulances have been dispatched. Continuous snowfall and rain are hindering movement, but once the weather improves, large-scale rescue efforts will resume,” SDMA Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said late evening, adding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also closely monitoring the situation and has promised “all possible assistance from the central government”. Speaking to reporters in the evening, CM Dhami also blamed bad weather for slowing the operations. “Experts, the Indian Air Force, and other services have been working. We are monitoring and trying to help all the labourers get out. We have also established a helpline for the region. We are constantly in touch with the Defence Minister, Home Minister, and PMO. We are seeking help from them. The injured are being treated at the ITBP hospital at Mana. Srinagar Medical College and Rishikesh AIIMS have also been readied," he said.
