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Central agencies and state monitoring situation in Uttarakhand: Amit Shah
Union home minister Amit Shah also said that the Uttarakhand government has apprised that there is no danger of flooding in the lower areas and water level is also receding.
Union home minister Amit Shah on Tuesday informed the Rajya Sabha that central and state agencies are monitoring the ongoing rescue operations in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district after a glacier burst in the region on Sunday left at least 31 people dead.
Shah also said that the Uttarakhand government has apprised that there is no danger of flooding in the lower areas and water level is also receding. He added that electricity has been restored in most areas and Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is carrying out repair work of the five bridges that were damaged in the glacial burst.
Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Tuesday conducted an aerial survey of areas affected by the glacier burst and also visited the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) hospital in Joshimath in Chamoli where injured people have been admitted. Chief minister Rawat also announced a financial assistance of ₹4 lakh for families of those killed. "Experts can tell the reason behind the glacier outburst. But our government is right now focused on saving lives of people," said Rawat.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also approved an ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh each from Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for families of those killed.
Also watch| ITBP conducts rescue ops overnight, UP govt issues helpline numbers
At least 1,000 disaster response, military and paramilitary personnel worked to clear a 1.7-km tunnel in the badly hit National Thermal Power Corporation’s 530 MW Tapovan Vishnugrad project on Monday, where at least 35 people are still stranded in waist-deep muck. They had rescued 12 people stuck in a small tunnel at the NTPC dam site on Sunday. A team of experts from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has also reached Uttarakhand to assess situation at the site.
Read more: 'All hope was lost': Uttarakhand workers recall hours spent trapped in tunnel
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is involved in the rescue operations along with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF). The disaster is the worst to hit the state since the 2013 Kedarnath floods which killed 5,700 people.
Two C-130J Super Hercules transport planes with three companies of NDRF and 15 tonnes of other loads and equipment were also sent to Uttarakhand from Hindon airbase in Ghaziabad.
