Site of the Tapovan hydel project as rescue works are underway on Wednesday after a glacier broke off in Joshimath causing massive flooding in Dhauli Ganga River, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.
(Express photo by Gajendra Yadav)Uttarakhand flash floods Live Updates: With more than three days since the flash flood struck Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, hopes of finding any more survivors at the Tapovan and Rishi Ganga power project sites dimmed as rescue agencies recovered six more bodies on Tuesday.
So far, 34 bodies have been recovered in the region, with over 170 people still missing.
DIG Garhwal Neeru Garg said that of the six bodies recovered on Tuesday, four were from the Rishi Ganga power project site at Raini village, one was from Chamoli and another from Nandprayag. Two of the bodies are of police personnel who were deployed at the power plant, she said.
At the Tapovan tunnel, the centre of the rescue operations where 35 people are feared trapped, there has been no breakthrough so far, despite excavators working round the clock to remove the slush in the 1.9-km tunnel. Rescue agencies are now deploying advanced technologies such as a helicopter carrying a laser with electromagnetic pulse imager for an aerial survey over the tunnel, and a camera drone to be sent inside the tunnel.
Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar told The Indian Express that they had managed to reach 130 metres into the Tapovan tunnel. (File photo)
A six-member team of scientists, from Chandigarh-based Defence Geo-Informatics Research Establishment of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), has completed its first survey of Nanda Devi glacier and the downstream areas affected by the flash flood in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district.
The team has sent images and other samples for examination to its Chandigarh laboratory, sources said. Read more
After three days of rescue operations in NTPC’s Intake Adit tunnel in Uttarakhand’s flash flood-hit Tapovan area, the strategy was changed Wednesday evening, after NTPC authorities said the labourers were trapped in another silt filtration tunnel located 12 metres below Intake Adit.
Sources said that Uttarakhand government authorities, in a meeting today, directed NTPC officials to share “correct” information, and send expert engineers of the tunnel to the site to assist in the rescue operations. More details here.
Two persons who were listed as missing in the avalanche and flash floods in Uttarakhand returned to their homes safely on Wednesday after being stranded in different areas of Chamoli district following the calamity three days ago, officials said.
Suraj Singh from Chamoli in Uttarakhand and Rashid from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh returned to their homes on Wednesday, Additional District Information Officer, Chamoli, Ravindra Negi said.
Singh and Rashid were among those missing after the calamity, as per official records.
The duo were stranded while they were returning to their villages, the officials said. (PTI)
ITBP personnel carrying ration items to Long village, which has been cut off due to flash floods.
Two more bodies recovered in Chamoli district. Death toll in the flash flood incident reaches 34.
Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama has written to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, expressing his condolences to the families of the people killed in a glacier disaster in Chamoli district of the state.
"I offer my condolences to those who have lost loved ones, and pray for them. I also pray for the safety and well-being of those who are still missing. I understand that both the central and the state governments are engaged in rescue work and are doing their utmost to provide relief to people affected by this calamity," the letter read.
"As a gesture of solidarity with the people of Uttarakhand, I have asked the Dalai Lama Trust to make a donation towards the relief and rescue efforts," it added. (PTI)
ITBP and other agencies are cutting loose ends of pipes and wires inside the Tapovan tunnel as rescue operation continues.
A team of scientific experts from the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology has made an aerial survey of the location of the snow avalanche which triggered flash floods in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand on Sunday. The experts stated that the flash floods could be a case of a large chunk of snow slipping from a hanging glacier.
The team returned to Raini village, which saw maximum damage of the flash floods, and is trying to reach the ground location today. More details here.
Each time someone mentioned that another body has been pulled out of the debris, Salik Zargar pushed past officials engaged in the rescue and relief operations to check if it was his missing father. Each time, the body was that of someone else and the 24-year-old would return relieved, yet anxious.
Salik said he wanted to believe that there was still a chance that his father, Basharat Zargar (52), was alive.
At Raini village, around 8 km ahead of Tapovan, lies the Rishiganga Power Plant. Like at Tapovan, many working at the plant and a few residents of the villages around are missing. However, officials at the site say they are not looking for survivors anymore.
A meeting of multiple agencies including ITBP, Army and local administration was held in Joshimath on Wednesday to review the rescue and relief strategy, news agency ANI reported.
ITBP personnel Wednesday carried ration to villages cut off from the rest of the Chamoli district by land due to the glacier burst. Below is a video from Lata Helipad in Chamoli district.
As rescue operations continued for the third day in the tunnel at Tapovan power project site without a breakthrough, the Army made an attempt to start search operations near the barrage of the project on Dhauli Ganga river, at a site where more than a hundred people are feared missing.
But the team had to abort the operation after finding the surface unsuitable for movement.
A team of four Army personnel from Garhwal Rifles on Tuesday morning climbed to reach a site between the barrage of the NTPC project and a retaining wall, located about 150 metres away. Over a dozen Armymen stayed at a higher perch with ropes and other equipment to assist them in climbing down, and later getting up.
A Chinook successfully executed a landing at Malari and an Advanced Light Helicopter landed at Tapovan after carrying out an aerial recce of Tapovan and the glacier on Wednesday, the Indian Air Force said, news agency ANI reported.
Sunday’s flash floods in Uttarakhand underline the risk. One of India’s leading glaciologists discusses ways to assess and minimise this. Excerpts from an interview with D P Dobhal, a glaciologist, formerly associated with the Dehradun-based Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology. He has worked extensively on Himalayan glaciers.
What could be behind the disaster in Uttarakhand?
It seems like an incident triggered by a snow avalanche. The area had seen two days of heavy snowfall last week. And suddenly the weather cleared and became a little warmer. That seems to have led to some melting of snow, triggering an avalanche, which resulted in a series of events leading to the flash floods. Read more here
Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar Wednesday said not much progress has been made in the rescue operation being carried out in the aftermath of the flash floods in the state. "We've recovered 32 bodies, 8 identified, 24 unknown. Rescue team also recovered 2 Uttarakhand Police personnel bodies. Can't confirm exact number for missing & dead people but it's between 192 & 204," he said.
Multi-agency rescue operations to rescue those stuck inside Tapovan tunnel in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district continued on Wednesday.
Aparna Kumar, DIG Sector HQ, ITBP, Chamoli said, "The challenge we are facing is that debris & slush is coming out from the tunnel. Machines to continue to work inside the tunnel. We need to progress carefully as water with high pressure might come from inside the tunnel."
"We just know that tunnel is 2.5 km long & 30-35 workers inside got stuck. SDRF, police, ITPB, Army & Navy divers removing debris to find those stuck inside the tunnel," said Piyoosh Rautela, Disaster Mitigation & Management Centre, Uttarakhand.
Below are some visuals of the rescue operations inside Tapovan tunnel.
As debris and slush were cleared from the Rishi Ganga power plant site near Raini village, which bore the brunt of the flash flood in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, four bodies and the remains of a fifth were recovered Tuesday.
It was a grim reminder of the deluge that destroyed the plant two days ago.
The area where a water tank and a residential block stood was completely flattened, and a suspension bridge washed away, leaving 13 villages till the China border inaccessible by road. And, fears that another flash flood could hit the area continued to keep residents on tenterhooks.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said he came under sharp attack as environment minister when he stopped hydel projects on rivers in Uttarakhand as the cumulative impact of the projects were not taken into consideration, PTI reported.
His comments came two days after a portion of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, triggering an avalanche and a deluge in the Alaknanda river system that washed away hydroelectric stations and endangered lives of people living along the banks.
"As environment minister, I came under sharp attack for stopping hydel projects on Alaknanda, Bhagirathi and other rivers in Uttarakhand on ecological grounds. We weren't considering the cumulative impacts of these projects. I can't help but recall that now," he said on Twitter.
As officers descended towards the Rishi Ganga bank in Raini village, they prayed they do not sink in the heavy sludge left behind by the flash floods that washed away the hydro power plant at the site.
Tense moments ensued, before a team of five people was finally able to make its way across the river, which at present is just a trickle. The mission was simple – to establish contact with villages that have been cut off from the rest of the Chamoli district by land. These 13 villages lead to the country’s border with China. A zip line is being set up to send emergency supplies and to bring people to the other side of the river in case of medical emergencies.
A team ITBP, NDRF, SDRF & other agencies continued to conduct rescue operation inside Tapovan tunnel on the third day after flash floods hit Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Wednesday. A meeting of all agencies including senior officials of ITBP, NDRF, Army & local administration has been called today to decide further course of action, news agency ANI reported.
Wacth video of the rescue operations being carried out:
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday gave Rs 11 crore as financial aid from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to the Uttarakhand State Disaster Response Fund in the wake of the glacier tragedy in the hill state.
In this hour of tragedy and crisis, the Haryana government stands with Uttarakhand, and every possible help will be given to the state to deal with the disaster, Khattar said in an official statement said. (PTI)
"A joint team of ITBP, NDRF, SDRF and other agencies conducting rescue operation used drone camera to see feasibility to enter beyond cleared site inside Tapovan tunnel. They haven't been successful so far. Machines deployed to clear slush," the ITBP said.
At least 70 people from Uttar Pradesh are feared missing in the glacier burst at Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district that triggered an avalanche and a deluge in the Alaknanda river system that washed away hydroelectric stations on Sunday, officials said.
Of the 70 people, 34 are from Lakhimpur Kheri district alone.
"As of now, 70 people from Uttar Pradesh are feared missing, including 34 from Lakhimpur Kheri, nine from Saharanpur and five from Shravasti," Relief Commissioner of Uttar Pradesh Sanjay Goyal told PTI on Tuesday.
Central Govt is monitoring the situation, PM himself is monitoring it. Both the control rooms of the Home Ministry are monitoring the situation round the clock & the state is being provided with all the possible help: Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Lok Sabha (ANI)
"12 people of NTPC project were safely rescued from one tunnel, 15 people of Rishiganga project were also rescued at the time of the incident. 25-35 people feared trapped in 2nd tunnel of NTPC project, efforts are underway on war footing to rescue them," Amit Shah in Lok Sabha.
How trapped people are being rescued
'93 NTPC workers are missing, 39 still stuck in the tunnel, we're trying to reach them. We are planning to install Early Warning System as a precautionary measure against avalanche,' Union Power Minister RK Singh was quoted as saying by ANI.
Singh also said that financial aid of Rs 20 lakhs will be given to deceased's family.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Tuesday sent a team of three ministers to Uttarakhand for better coordination with the state in carrying out relief works after the glacier disaster, news agency PTI reported citing an official spokesman.
"The chief minister has made a committee of three ministers to visit Uttarakhand for better coordination with the state. The members of the committee included Suresh Kumar Rana, Vijay Kashyap and Dharam Singh Saini, who have left for Uttarakhand on Tuesday," he said.
Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar Tuesday said search for the missing people is underway. "Search operation is on for the missing. We are searching river bed & debris. Today, three bodies were recovered from the debris in Raini village including our police personnel."
"We can't estimate exact time to remove debris as there's 90-degrees turn in the tunnel. We've asked project engineers to make alternative entry to reach through. We'll attempt this today. Don't think there'll be insufficient oxygen & water as tunnel is 2.5km long," he further added.
In view of the rescue operations which are underway at the Tapovan tunnel in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, ITBP ADG Manoj Singh Rawat Tuesday said, "We have reached up to 120 metres inside the tunnel. We are short by another 60 metre to reach link where we are anticipating presence of people."
While new evidence from satellite images suggest that glacial lakes might not be the reason for Sunday’s flash flood in Uttarakhand, several studies in the last few years have highlighted the risk posed by such lakes in causing similar incidents.
These studies have taken note of the rapid increase in the number of glacial lakes due to a retreat in the glaciers caused by warming temperatures, and their potential to cause largescale flooding and destruction. The Kedarnath tragedy in 2013, for example, had involved a breach in a large glacial lake.
Members of Rajya Sabha Tuesday paid tribute to victims of Uttarakhand glacier disaster.
Union Home Minister Tuesday issued a statement on the avalanche in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, in Rajya Sabha and said all concerned agencies of Centre and State are monitoring the situation.
"450 jawans of ITBP, 5 teams of NDRF, 8 teams of Indian Army, a Navy team and 5 IAF helicopters are engaged in search and rescue operation," Shah further added.
It was only last month that Haridas Mahto and four of his friends from Jharkhand resumed duty at NTPC’s hydro power project site in Tapovan. Since then, they had not taken a day off. Until Sunday.
“After working for several days, we took an off on Sunday with a plan to relax at our quarters at the project site and watch movies on our mobile phones after lunch. We were seated around a bonfire outside our quarters at around 10.30 am when I saw a flood of water in the Dhauliganga river. I shouted out, asking everyone to run. We ran to a location about 100 metres high. We were so rattled that we did not come back down to our room for nearly two hours,” says Mahto who hails from Ramgarh.
Those who escaped with him were Roshan from Ramgarh, Kuldeep and Shailesh from Bokaro, and Sunil Kumar from Ranchi.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar Tuesday donated Rs 11 crores to Uttarakhand State Disaster Response Fund, Haryana Directorate of Information and Public Relations stated.
Three bodies have been recovered from the Rishiganga power project site in Raini village, Joshimath, on Tuesday.
According to officials, the Kundan group, which runs the project at site, has provided them with a list of 44 people who were on duty at the plant at the time of the flash flood. Two police personnel were also at the site when the incident took place on Sunday morning.
Villagers, however, say that there is a chance that more than 70 people are stuck under debris. “Around eight people from the nearby villages are missing. The water and sludge came with such force that we have no idea what to make of the disappearances,” said Bhavan Rana, sarpanch of Raini village.
Rescue operations are underway at Rishiganga power project at Raini village of Uttarakhand. See visuals below:
Sati Negi, 34, slept in on Sunday, something she fears may have robbed her of a chance to speak to her younger brother ever again. Sitting outside the blocked tunnel at NTPC’s Tapovan-Vishnugad Hydel Power Project on Monday, she sobbed quietly in a corner as several senior officials and ministers, including Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, visited the site.
She believes her brother Praminder Bisht is trapped with 34 others inside the 1,900-metre-long tunnel.
The death toll from the Uttarakhand glacier disaster rose to 28 with the recovery of two more bodies, even as a multi-agency operation to rescue around 30 workers feared trapped inside a swamped tunnel at the Tapovan power project in Chamoli district continued on Tuesday, officials said, reported PTI.
Rescue operations have been underway inside a flooded tunnel near Tapovan since February 7. ITBP men had rescued 12 persons who were trapped in the tunnel. All are now recovering at Joshimath Hospital. Watch the video here:
For hours until help arrived, they stayed that way – hanging on to iron bars protruding from the roof of the dark tunnel, hauling themselves up to stay above the icy cold water that had gushed in on Sunday morning.
The 12 people who were rescued from the under-construction output tunnel at the Tapovan-Vishnugad NTPC Hydel Power Project say they had no hope that they would survive, but a mobile phone proved a godsend.
A joint team of ITBP, Army, NDRF and SDRF entered into the Tapovan tunnel in Uttarakhand to check the water level inside the tunnel ahead of the point till where the debris has been cleared. Watch the video here:
More than 48 hours after the disaster in Uttarakhand, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will make a statement in Rajya Sabha at 11:30 am on Tuesday.
Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat Tuesday visited 1st Battalion ITBP Joshimath Hospital to see the 12 labourers rescued by the ITBP yesterday from a tunnel near Tapovan in Chamoli. All of them are recovering.
After Sunday’s flooding incident in Uttarakhand, residents of Lahaul in Himachal Pradesh have intensified their opposition to the proposed hydel projects in the valley, fearing an occurrence of similar disasters in the fragile region. At least two gram panchayats in the valley have met since Sunday, resolving to not let any hydel project be set up in the Chandrabhaga or Chenab basin, home to a large number of glaciers. A few days ago, one of the panchayats also wrote to the President against the “destructive” hydel projects.
Currently, there is no hydel project in the high-altitude district of Lahaul and Spiti, but 56 small and big projects are proposed to be built there, according to Vikram Katoch, vice president of Save Lahaul Spiti.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat Tuesday conducted an aerial survey of areas affected due to the glacier disaster in the state and took stock of the situation. Below are some of his pictures.
While scientific teams are still to begin their investigation into the cause of Sunday’s flash flood in Uttarakhand, new evidence suggests that the incident may have been caused by a breach in a temporary pool or lake formed by obstructions due to landslides or snow avalanches — an event described as a Landslide Lake Outburst Flood (LLOF).
Satellite images circulated among scientists tracking the incident show that a large chunk of fresh snow from a mountain near Raini village in Chamoli district had dropped off Sunday, possibly becoming the reason for the flash flood. The resulting avalanche could have released 3-4 million cubic metres of water in the rivers.
Rescue operations continued at Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli, Uttarakhand on Tuesday. Below is a video from the site.