7 labourers on Char Dham road project in Uttarakhand killed in landslide

At least seven labourers died and four others were injured in a landslide as they were working on the Char Dham all-weather road project in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district on Friday afternoon.

A rescue operation is underway by local administration and police to rescue those feared to be trapped under the debris.

Rudraprayag district magistrate Mangesh Ghildiyal said that the incident in the Ukhimeeth Bhiri area occurred at around 12.30 pm.

“The construction work was going on when suddenly a landslide took place, bringing down silt and boulders on the labourers. The local administration and the police were immediately pressed into rescue operation after we got to know about the incident,” he said.

“So far, seven bodied have been recovered and four injured have been rescued from the spot and rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. The rescue operation is still on and the traffic on the highway has been blocked.”

State disaster response force (SDRF) official Alok Praveen said, “Two teams of the SDRF with required equipment and tools for the rescue operation have been sent to the spot from the SDRF base in Gaurikund area. Another team from Gochar is also on the way to join the rescue operation.”

“If it seems that the rescue operation has to be continued in the night also, then more teams would also be sent,” he added.

The road project seeks to connect the ‘Char Dham’ (Yamunotri, Gangotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath) for pilgrims all around the year.