Page 12 - Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand avalanche: Search for two mountaineers continues for 11th day

Search for the two mountaineers who continue to be missing after the October 4 avalanche in the district went on for the 11th day on Friday amid bad weather. Meanwhile, one more body recovered earlier was brought to the district hospital here to be handed over to the relatives after a post-mortem. Inclement weather at the avalanche site located at an altitude of 17,000 feet near Draupadi ka Danda-II peak has been hampering search and rescue efforts for nearly a week. Two mountaineers out of a team of 29 are still missing, Registrar of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering Vishal Ranjan said. Twenty-seven bodies have already been recovered and brought down, he said. Those who went missing after the avalanche are said to have fallen into a crevasse. However, the body of trainee mountaineer Sourav Biswas from West Bengal, which had been recovered earlier was brought to the ITBP camp at Matli and then to the district hospital here on Friday, he said. The body will be handed over to rel

Uttarkashi avalanche: Five more bodies discovered, brought back to Matli

Bodies of five more avalanche victims were brought to the ITBP camp in Matli on Monday, even as continuous snowfall hampered the efforts to locate two mountaineers still missing. The discovery of five more bodies on Monday takes the number of bodies brought down from the summit camp so far to 26, Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela said. "One body is still at the summit camp while search for the two missing mountaineers continues," he said. Twenty-nine climbers, including 27 trainees and two instructors, who were part of an advanced mountaineering course at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering had gone missing after they were struck by a massive avalanche at an altitude of 17,000 feet on their way back from Draupadi ka Danda-II peak on October 4. A multi-agency search-and-rescue operations by the SDRF, ITBP, Army and IAF was launched on the same day, which still continues. "Continuous snowfall over the avalanche-hit site is hampering search operation. But efforts to fi

Campaign to continue till all accused caught: CM Dhami on UKSSSC exam row

After the arrest of former controller of the UKSSSC examination RS Pokharia, CM Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the campaign will continue till all the accused are caught

Uttarakhand: Bad weather hampers rescue efforts for missing mountaineers

Search efforts for the three missing mountaineers were hamstrung by heavy snowfall on Friday over the avalanche-hit site near the Draupadi ka Danda' peak. Twenty-nine members of a team from Nehru Institute of Mountaineering had gone missing after an avalanche hit them on their way back from the summit, according to the NIM. Twenty-six bodies have since been recovered and three are still missing. Four out of twenty six bodies retrieved so far have already been handed over to their families. Efforts are on to bring down the rest. With weather conditions obstructing the search efforts, relatives who have come to Uttarkashi from different parts of the country are getting impatient. Aerial rescue operations can be resumed only after the weather improves, District Disaster Management Officer Devendra Patwal said.

Uttarkashi avalanche: 10 more bodies recovered, toll climbs to 26

Ten more bodies were recovered from the site of an avalanche here, taking the death toll to 26, the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering said on Friday. Two Cheetah helicopters took off from the Army helipad in Harsil to join the search operations, officials said. The avalanche occurred at a height of 17,000 feet on Tuesday when a team of the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) was returning after summiting Draupadi Ka Danda II peak. Three more bodies were recovered from the avalanche site late on Thursday evening and seven were found on Friday, taking the total number of bodies retrieved so far to 26, the NIM said. While 24 of these bodies are of trainee mountaineers, two are of their instructors, it said. According to the NIM, three trainees are still missing. Fifteen bodies were recovered on Thursday, the NIM said. Four of the bodies that were being brought to Matli were taken to the Harsil helipad due to bad weather. From there, they were sent to Uttarkashi in ambulances, .

Uttarkashi avalanche: 12 more bodies retrieved, death toll rises to 16

The death toll in the Uttarkashi avalanche rose to 16 after 12 more mountaineers' bodies were recovered on Thursday, Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) said. Fifteen climbers are still believed to be missing. The avalanche occurred at a height of 17,000 feet on Tuesday when the NIM team was returning after summiting Draupadi Ka Danda II peak. Of the 16 bodies retrieved, 14 are of trainees and two of instructors, NIM said in a bulletin. Four bodies were recovered on the day of the avalanche. A search-and-rescue operation is in progress at the disaster site, the institute said. However, helicopters were pulled from the operation due to bad weather. Their operation will resume on Friday morning depending on the weather, it added. Earlier in the day, a 14-member team from High Altitude Warfare School based in Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir joined the rescue operation, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) here said. Nayab Subedar Anil Kumar, the instructor leading the team,

33 killed as bus carrying marriage party falls into gorge in Uttarakhand

At least 25 people were killed and 20 others injured when a bus carrying 45-50 members of a marriage party fell into a gorge in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal district, police said on Wednesday. The bus was on its way to Kanda village in Bironkhal from Laldhang town in Haridwar when it fell into a 500-metre gorge near Simri bend at around 7 pm on Tuesday, they said. Rescue operations were carried out throughout the night, police said, adding four bodies have been retrieved so far. Twenty people injured in the accident were pulled out of the mangled remains of the bus and rushed to hospitals in Bironkhal, Rikhnikhal and Kotdwar, police said. One of the injured died on the way to the hospital, they said. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and former Union minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank arrived for an on-the-spot assessment of the situation.

10 bodies retrieved, 27 mountaineers missing after avalanche in Uttarkashi

Twenty-seven mountaineers remained missing on Wednesday after rescue workers brought 14 injured members of their team to safety, a day after an avalanche claimed 10 lives in Uttarkashi. The Uttarakhand Police said on Facebook that 10 bodies have been retrieved so far as a multi-agency search and rescue operation aided by IAF helicopters continued through the day to find those missing. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami did an aerial inspection of the area, which is at a height of 17,000 feet, that was hit by the avalanche on Tuesday and told reporters that 27 climbers are still missing. He said he prayed for their safety even as personnel of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and mountaineers from the Nehru Institute Of Mountaineering (NIM) are trying to find the missing climbers. "Out of 34, 27 are still missing, Dhami told reporters after the aerial survey along with Haridwar MP and former Union ...

Uttarakhand CM announces financial assistance for victims of two accidents

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Wednesday announced financial assistance to the kin of the deceased in the Uttarkashi and Pauri Garhwal tragedies which occurred on Tuesday

14 rescued as search ops in avalanche-hit Uttarakhand peak resumes

Fourteen members of a mountaineering team which had gone missing after being hit by an avalanche at Draupadi Ka Danda peak in Uttarakashi district were rescued on Wednesday as a multi-agency rescue operation aided by IAF helicopters was underway to find the several others missing. Principal of the Uttarkashi-based Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) Col Amit Bisht had said on Tuesday that ten bodies were spotted out of which four had been recovered.However, police confirmed the death of four. Earlier in the day, the Uttarakhand Police released a list of 28 trainee mountaineers who were missing in the avalanche at the height of 17,000 feet. Sub Divisional Magistrate, Bhatwari, Chattar Singh Chauhan said 14 members of the team out of which six had sustained minor injuries in the avalanche were airlifted to Matli in two sorties, Eight more rescued in another sortie are alright, he said, adding they are being sent back to the NIM. Out of the 14 rescued so far 10 are trainees and f

Uttarakhand Police releases list of 28 mountaineers missing after avalanche

The Uttarakhand Police on Wednesday released a list of 28 trainee mountaineers who went missing after being hit by a massive avalanche at a height of 17,000 feet at Draupadi Ka Danda-II peak in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district. The trainees were part of a 41-member team of mountaineers from the Uttarkashi-based Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) and were returning along with their instructors after climbing the peak as part of their advanced training course when they were hit by the avalanche on Tuesday. The list of trainees includes those from West Bengal, Delhi, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Assam, Haryana, Gujarat, Hmachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. According to NIM Principal Colonel Amit Bisht, 10 bodies were spotted on Tuesday out of which four were recovered. Rescue operations, which had to be halted due to darkness and inclement weather, will be resumed on Wednesday.

Saddened by loss of lives in Uttarakhand bus accident: President Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday condoled the loss of lives in a bus accident in Uttarakhand's Pauri district and offered deepest condolences to the bereaved family members. At least 25 people were killed and 20 others injured when a bus carrying around 45-50 members of a marriage party fell into a gorge in Pauri district on Tuesday night. "Saddened by many casualties when a bus fell into a valley in Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand. My deepest condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in this accident. I wish the injured a speedy recovery," the president tweeted in Hindi.

25 people dead in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal district bus accident

A bus carrying around 45 to 50 people fell into a gorge on Rikhnikhal-Birokhal road near Simdi village in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal district on Tuesday

Ten bodies spotted, four retrieved after avalanche in Uttarakhand

The avalanche struck at an altitude of around 17,000 feet around 8.45 am when the team of 34 trainee mountaineers and seven instructors from Uttarkashi-based NIM was returning after summiting

Winter sets in as higher reaches of Uttarakhand receive heavy snowfall

The last outpost near the China border in the Darma Valley of Uttarakhand received the third snowfall of this season

Uttar Pradesh's merchandise exports surge 32% to Rs 60,578 crore

The electrical machinery/equipment segment grew nearly 90 per cent with shipments jumping to Rs 13,606 crore in the April-July 2022 from Rs 7,202 crore in the year-ago period.

Uttarakhand's all-weather road project hamstrung by landslides, blockages

Owing to frequent and prolonged disruptions during monsoon, the 150-km Tanakpur-Pithoragarh stretch of the all-weather road' project has not been able to achieve its basic objective of providing uninterrupted connectivity to the India-China borders and smooth transportation of defence supplies. The stretch which is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious all-weather road project for Uttarakhand was closed more than 300 times due to landslides during monsoon over the past two years, officials said. "The stretch along NH-9 remained closed for 350 hours in 55 days in 2022 and 545 hours in 110 days in 2021," Champawat's District Disaster Management Officer (DDMO) Manoj Pandey said. The Pithoragarh portion of the road has been blocked since Tuesday, Pithoragarh DDMO BS Mahar said. The stretch has been blocked many times this monsoon, he added. "The road could be of an all-weather nature only after the landslide sensitive points are treated and a 167-metre-long bridge at Chalthi

Ankita Bhandari murder case: 3 key accused remanded in SIT custody

The Special Investigation Team investigating the Ankita Bhandari murder case has taken the three main accused on police remand, an official said on Saturday. Accused Pulkit Arya, owner of the resort where Bhandari was working as a receptionist, and his two accomplices -- resort manager Saurabh Bhaskar and assistant manager Ankit Gupta -- were arrested on September 23 for allegedly killing her after she refused to give 'extra service' to a VIP customer who is yet to be identified. The trio may also be taken to the crime scene to establish the sequence of events, the official said on the condition of anonymity. Revenue police sub-inspector Vaibhav Pratap Singh, who is under suspension for dereliction of duty for allegedly not registering an FIR in the case despite being approached, is also being interrogated. Further, the investigating team has recorded the statement of Ankita's friend with whom she had a chat on the day of her murder. The SIT has constituted five teams to speed up

Avalanche near Uttarakhand's Kedarnath Temple, no damage reported

An avalanche occurred behind the Kedarnath Dham in the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand on Saturday but no damage was caused to the temple, the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee President informed."An avalanche occurred this morning in the Himalayan region but no damage was sustained to the Kedarnath temple," Ajendra Ajay, President, Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee told ANI.As per the information, the giant glacier behind the Kedarnath was broken for the second time since the last month and appeared like a watershed from distance.Details regarding the status of Yatra are currently awaited.Earlier the avalanche had occurred in the catchment of Chorabari Glacier at Kedarnath Dham on the evening of September 22.Chorabari Glacier is situated at a distance of about 5 km behind Kedarnath temple. It is raining heavily in the state for the last few days.National Highway (NH)- 109 at Rudraprayag was blocked on Thursday, with long queues of vehicles after a sudden landslide led to ..

CM Dhami visits Ankita Bhandari's home, assures justice to family

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday met the parents of slain receptionist Ankita Bhandari at their Srikot village home in Pauri district and assured justice. The Uttarakhand chief minister also offered financial assistance to Bhandari's parents. Dhami said the state government stood with the family, adding that it was committed to ensuring justice to Bhandari. The matter will be heard in a fast track court and her killers would be given the harshest punishment, he said. The accused have already been arrested and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) P Renuka Devi set up to probe into the case, Dhami said. Legal action will also be taken against others involved in the case. No one will be spared, he added. Local MLA and Cabinet minister Dhan Singh Rawat, Pauri District Magistrate VK Jogdande and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Yashwant Singh Chauhan accompanied the chief minister on his visit. Bhandari (19) worked a