Rudraprayag rains: Weeks later, bodies of 7 missing people recovered

Two bodies were recovered on October 24, and 5 bodies were recovered on October 25. The bodies of 2 missing persons are yet to be recovered in the incident that occurred on August 29

Dehradun: Bodies of seven people who had gone missing due to an extreme rainfall event on August 29 in Chhenagarh area of Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district were recovered in the last two days, a district official said.

SDRF personnel conduct a search and rescue operation at a cloudburst-hit village, in Rudraprayag district, Uttarakhand, on August 29. (File Photo / PTI)

Nine people went missing in the rain-related incident on August 29 in Chhenagarh area of Rudraprayag.

Nandan Singh Rajwar, Rudraprayag district disaster management officer (DDMO), said, “On October 24 and 25, during the search operation, a total of 7 bodies of the missing persons were recovered. One of the bodies has been identified as that of Kuldeep Singh (25), a resident of village Uchhola in Tehsil Basukedaar. The process of identification of six bodies is underway.”

“Two bodies were recovered on October 24, and 5 bodies were recovered on October 25. The bodies of 2 missing persons are yet to be recovered in the incident that occurred on August 29,” he said.

In September, authorities began the process to issue death certificates for those still missing in the August 5 Dharali tragedy in order to distribute the compensation amount to their families without further delay.

A massive mudslide struck Dharali village in Uttarkashi district on August 5 following flash floods in high-altitude villages, triggering a sudden flow of debris and water through the settlements. Officials said two bodies have been recovered so far in the Dharali tragedy, while 67 others, including 25 Nepali nationals, remain missing. Rescuers are still engaged in search operations.