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52 dead in Uttarakhand floods, Amit Shah to conduct aerial survey today
“After his (Amit Shah’s) arrival in Uttarakhand at midnight, he was apprised about the damage caused by the natural calamity in the last two days,” Uttarakhand chief minister Dhami tweeted.
Union home minister Amit Shah, who reached Uttarakhand around midnight, will take stock of the flood situation in the state on Thursday. Shah was welcomed by chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami at the Dehradun airport.
Shah will also conduct an aerial survey of the state’s affected areas, news agency ANI reported.
“After his (Amit Shah’s) arrival in Uttarakhand at midnight, he was apprised about the damage caused by the natural calamity in the last two days,” chief minister Dhami tweeted, adding that the Union home minister also visited the rescue and relief operations being done in the state.
The death toll due to the floods caused by incessant rainfall since Sunday has climbed to 52. Seventeen people have been injured till now while five are still missing. Of the total deaths, 28 were reported from Nainital alone. According to an official statement, a majority of the deaths were due to house collapses. Forty-six of such houses suffered damages.
The weather in Uttarakhand cleared on Wednesday morning and Nainital saw the sun rising without any trace of rain. Tourists in Nainital were out shopping and sightseeing and taxis also started operating. The supply of electricity and telephone connections, which were earlier in the town, was restored on Wednesday.
The Haldwani-Nainital national highway is open for light vehicles only because of landslide-prone zones at some spots.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said on Wednesday that it has rescued over 1,300 people from the affected areas. Seventeen teams of the NDRF have been deployed across Uttarakhand.
“So far, NDRF rescuers have evacuated more than 1,300 stranded people from Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital. They are also distributing relief material in flood-affected areas of Uttarakhand,” a spokesperson said.
Six NDRF teams have been deployed in Udham Singh Nagar, two teams each in Uttarkashi, Chamoli and one each in Dehradun, Champawat, Pithoragarh and Haridwar.
As the weather conditions improved on Wednesday, state government authorities allowed the stranded pilgrims to proceed towards the Chardham destinations of Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Gangotri.
(With agency inputs)
