Uttarakhand Diaries

Over the past few days,air force and army helicopters have dropped tonnes of supplies to survivors

LIFESTYLE MEDICINES

Over the past few days,air force and army helicopters have dropped tonnes of supplies to survivors and relief camps. Most of it has been food and water,but some medical supplies have also been dropped. The most in demand medicines,however,are those for treating hypertension and diabetics,the lifestyle diseases that mostly elderly pilgrims suffer from.

MINISTER in TROUBLE

Uttarakhand agriculture minister Harak Singh Rawat had a close shave Sunday when a helicopter he had hired to visit Kedarnath was surrounded by an angry mob in Guptkashi after the minister refused to take along a few cases of drinking water,something that is desperately needed there. This despite the fact that people who had just flown down from Kedarnath passed an urgent message for water. It was only after the pilot of the private helicopter intervened to get a few cases on board 8211; stacked up on the laps of the television crews 8211; that the situation was defused.

MONSOON STOCKS

The armys presence in the border state has proved a lifeline for thousands of stranded pilgrims and tourists. Since June is when it stocks supplies before the monsoon rains close the roads,the soldiers had a decent supply of supplies on the border. The unexpected demand,however,has reduced the armys stocks to dangerously low levels; some posts have to make do on a day to day basis. The army men have also shared their personal rations with the victims of the devastation. But the army is confident of re-stocking for itself once the major part of the rescue work are over.

EXTRAORDINARY RISKS

In what is by far the biggest air evacuation by the armed forces,military aviators are taking extraordinary risks to rescue stranded people from various flood and landslide affected places in Uttarakhand; risks unheard of in peace time and even during military exercises. They have landed on a single rail and hovered in a narrow valley amid strong winds,but,perhaps,the toughest has been flying through inclement weather,extremely low visibility and rain. Col Suneet Sohal,who is leading the Army Aviations operations,flew a helicopter packed with survivors in near zero visibility and rain to the army cantonment in Dehradun Sunday. The Jammu-based 130 helicopter unit of the air force,tasked with dropping supplies at Siachen,has been at the forefront of rescue operations,using its Mi-17s with extraordinary agility. The Sarsawa-based 117 HU has also flown in extreme weather to evacuate stranded pilgrims from Kedarnath.