Trekker dead, 6 others stranded in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli

State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) spokesperson Lalita Negi said the seven-member group was stranded between Panar Bugyal and Rudranath

Published on: Oct 19, 2022, 15:19:15 IST

By Neeraj Santoshi

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One trekker has died while six others remained stranded between Panar Bugyal and Rudranath along the Rudranath trekking route 3,300 metres above sea level in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) spokesperson Lalita Negi said on Wednesday. The seven-member group included three trekkers from West Bengal and four locals.

The seven-member group included three trekkers from West Bengal and four locals. (ANI (Representative))

“The trekkers informed us on the phone that one trekker from West Bengal has died and the rest of them need to be rescued. Our team has left for the area around 32 km from the nearest SDRF base,” said Negi. “A team of forest officials from the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary has also left for the area.”

Divisional forest officer Indra Singh Negi said the disaster management department informed him about the trekkers and they rushed their team.

Twenty-seven people were earlier killed when an avalanche hit a 41-member group from Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) in Uttarkashi on October 4. The team was returning from Mount Draupadi ka Danda-2 peak (5,670 metres). Two members of the NIM remain missing.

In September, a trekker from West Bengal died in Uttarkashi, prompting authorities in neighbouring Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh to ban trekking along four routes. Seven trekkers were stranded in Rudraprayag at a height of around 4500 metres in May.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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