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Tag: Chamoli

  • Four of a family buried alive under landslide debris in Chamoli

    By Express News Service

    CHAMOLI: Four members of a family were killed in a landslide at Pangarh village in Tharali tehsil of Chamoli district when they were all sleeping in their house and all the members were buried under the debris. One person has been referred to a higher centre in critical condition.

    Speaking to The New Indian Express, Chamoli Superintendent of Police Shweta Chaubey said, “After the rescue operation with the help of SDRF and NDRF, all of them have been evacuated from there.  The deceased have been identified as Sunita Devi (37), Devanand (57), Dhananand (45) and Puli Devi (75)”.

    According to police sources, One of the two houses that collapsed was empty while five members of a family living in the other house were buried under the debris after being hit by the landslide.

    As soon as the incident was reported, the revenue police and regular police started relief rescue work with the help of locals. In the morning, NDRF team also reached the spot for relief work. Out of the five members of the family buried under the debris, four have died while one is seriously injured, who has been referred to the Higher Center. 

    The villagers blamed the government and the administration for the incident, saying the landslide information from the hill and the demand for displacement had been made by the villagers for a long time.

    Prem Purohit, a local resident, told this reporter, the landslide had been occurring for over a year, yet the local administration did not take care of it and the villagers were not displaced”, “which has resulted in the death of four people of the same family due to the landslide.

    CHAMOLI: Four members of a family were killed in a landslide at Pangarh village in Tharali tehsil of Chamoli district when they were all sleeping in their house and all the members were buried under the debris. One person has been referred to a higher centre in critical condition.

    Speaking to The New Indian Express, Chamoli Superintendent of Police Shweta Chaubey said, “After the rescue operation with the help of SDRF and NDRF, all of them have been evacuated from there.  The deceased have been identified as Sunita Devi (37), Devanand (57), Dhananand (45) and Puli Devi (75)”.

    According to police sources, One of the two houses that collapsed was empty while five members of a family living in the other house were buried under the debris after being hit by the landslide.

    As soon as the incident was reported, the revenue police and regular police started relief rescue work with the help of locals. In the morning, NDRF team also reached the spot for relief work. Out of the five members of the family buried under the debris, four have died while one is seriously injured, who has been referred to the Higher Center. 

    The villagers blamed the government and the administration for the incident, saying the landslide information from the hill and the demand for displacement had been made by the villagers for a long time.

    Prem Purohit, a local resident, told this reporter, the landslide had been occurring for over a year, yet the local administration did not take care of it and the villagers were not displaced”, “which has resulted in the death of four people of the same family due to the landslide.

  • Fresh avalanche claims 10 in Chamoli

    Express News Service
    DEHRADUN:  A little over two months after the deadly glacier burst and avalanche that claimed hundreds of lives in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli, a similar incident has hit the same district. There was another avalanche caused presumably by a glacier break in Malari-Sumna region in Niti Valley near the Tibet border on Friday. A total of 10 bodies have been recovered and 384 persons rescued.

    Swati Bhadauria, district magistrate of Chamoli, said: “Rescue operations are underway and the injured have been airlifted to Joshimath. One has to be referred to in Dehradun.” Officials said that a majority of the victims are from Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. There are also a few from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and elsewhere. They were working at a road project under the Border Roads Organisation. According to estimates, around 430 persons were staying in two camps for the workers when the avalanche followed by the glacier break struck. 

    Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat after conducting an aerial survey said: “Operations by combined teams of Indian Army, National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force and district administration are underway in full swing. No damages have been reported from nearby villages.”The avalanche hit the camp at around 4pm.

    Rescue operations were launched immediately, but efforts got delayed due to bad weather. Though an army camp is located at about just three kilometres from the spot, snowfall and rain impeded rescue efforts. Officials from BRO said that access points are blocked. The higher reaches of hilly areas of Uttarakhand including Niti Valley received 4-5 feet of snowfall recently. 

  • Eight bodies recovered, 384 people rescued after glacier burst in Uttarakhand

    Express News Service
    DEHRADUN: Eight bodies have been recovered and 384 people have been rescued from the site of a glacier break in Malari-Sumna of Niti Valley in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. Six people with critical injuries are undergoing treatment.

    After conducting an aerial survey of the spot on Saturday morning, Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat said that rescue operations are in full swing.

    “Rescue operations by a combined team including the Indian Army, district administration and National Disaster Response Force are underway. No damage to nearby villages has been reported,” said the CM after an aerial survey.

    The break is said to be near a road project in the border area which is being built by the BRO.

    The avalanche hit the camp of the Border Road Organization in Malari-Sumna on Friday at around 4 pm after which rescue operations were launched immediately but efforts got delayed due to bad weather.

    Officials from the BRO said that the access points and roads are blocked by the snowfall which can delay their journey to the spot.

    The higher reaches of hilly areas of Uttarakhand including the Niti Valley received 4-5 feet of snowfall.

    The Indian Army issued a statement on Friday evening saying that ‘blizzard conditions’ kept rescue operations at bay till late in the evening.

    “In a night rescue operation undertaken by the Army, another 150 GREF persons trapped in the BRO Camp have been rescued and brought to safety. Rescue operations are still in progress to locate the remainder persons still trapped under snow or stranded at work sites since late evening. Mountaineering rescue teams and air effort are at stand by for further rescue operations,” said the  Indian Army.

    Sumna is around 40 km from Raini village towards the Indo-Tibetan border from Joshimath of Chamoli district.

    Earlier on Friday, after reports of a glacier burst in Malari-Sumna of Chamoli district at Indo-Tibetan border surfaced, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat said he spoke to the Union home minister Amit Shah who promised help and support.

    Rawat tweeted, “Honorable union home minister has personally taken note of the incident and promised full support and help. I am thankful on the behalf of the people of Uttarakhand for his considerate and sensitive response.”

  • Uttarakhand: ITBP, SDRF remove obstacles from artificial lake in Chamoli

    By ANI
    CHAMOLI: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel along with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel on Thursday removed trees and boulders from the artificial lake formed after the flash flood in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district.

    According to ITBP sources, the flow of the water is not very high and water is discharging smoothly.

    The excavation work was carried out from 11:10 pm to 2:30 am last night at Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli. Water is being pumped out of the tunnel and excavation up to 180 meters is complete as of now.

    The death count in the Uttarakhand glacier burst incident has reached 70 after two more bodies were recovered from the debris, according to the state government on Tuesday.

    Meanwhile, the search and rescue operation for 134 missing people is underway.

    A glacier burst earlier in the Tapovan-Reni area of Chamoli District of Uttarakhand, which led to massive flooding in the Dhauliganga and Alaknanda rivers and damaged houses and the nearby Rishiganga power project. 

  • Uttarakhand glacier burst: Two more bodies recovered from Tapovan site

    By PTI
    GOPESHWAR: Two more bodies were recovered from the flood ravaged Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project site, taking the death toll in the calamity in Uttarakhand to 67 even as search operations continued there for the 15th day on Sunday.

    Three bodies had been recovered from the desilting tank near the Tapovan project barrage by Saturday evening while two more were extricated late at night, district administration officials said.

    Search operation at the project site has been underway on a war footing basis for a fortnight since it bore the brunt of an avalanche triggered by a glacier burst over Rishi Ganga in Chamoli district on February 7.

    The 13.2 mw Rishi Ganga hydel project was totally demolished in the avalanche while the Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project suffered extensive damage.

    The recovery of five bodies on Saturday takes the toll in the tragedy to 67 while 137 are still missing.

    Chamoli District Magistrate Swati S Bhadauria had asked the NTPC to press into service additional excavators and divert the course of Dhauli Ganga to the other side so that its water does not flow through the barrage into Tapovan tunnel hampering sludge clearing efforts.

    River water flowing into the tunnel from the barrage has been a major headache for rescuers at the tunnel making the muck clearing operations even more challenging, Bhadauria said.

  • Chamoli disaster: Many people found in Tapovan tunnel were alive till Feb 13, says official

    Express News Service
    DEHRADUN: After MS Khati, additional chief medical officer of Chamoli district said that those found from the tunnel must have been alive for 4-5 days, the state government officials issued a clarification on Tuesday evening.  

    MS Khati, the ACMO earlier in the day had said, “Most people found in the tunnel died 2-3 days after the flash floods. The post-mortem reports indicate that they died 4-5 days back. Many of died on February 12-13.”

    A total of 11 bodies have been recovered from the Tapovan tunnel out of which two were recovered on Tuesday. 

    ALSO READ | Chamoli Disaster: More bodies found inside Tapovan tunnel 

    Dr GS Rana, chief medical officer of Chamoli district who featured in the clarification video on the matter, said, “The Post-mortem of all 58 bodies has been conducted following the norms. These people died of trauma due to multiple reasons including injuires, filling of sludge, muck, sand and water in their lungs. I have been conducting the PMs myself and supervising the teams doing so. After going through every single PM report I have to say that with such injuries and in such conditions they would not have been alive for more than 30 minutes.”

    Rana also added in the video that the ACMO was not pary of the post-mortem teams nor he was authorized to comment in the matter. 

    Apparently, ACMO’s statement affirms allegations by the locals whose family members are missing. 

    The local residents whose family members are said to be trapped in the tunnel have alleged that the NTPC Limited officials are not being able to supervise the rescue efficiently in the early days of the disaster. 

    TNIE had earlier reported that how two senior officials at the forefront of the operations have confirmed that they got layout of the tunnel only on February 9 which hampered the rescue efforts for the first two days- Feb 7, and 8.

    A senior official had told TNIE on the condition of anonymity, “First two days we were blind!”

    Local residents lashed out on the NTPC. “Now it has been proved that we were right about the irresponsible attitude of the NTPC. They did not do enough to save our family members,” said Suraj Rao one of the protesters at the rescue site at Tapovan Hydro Power which took place on February 12. 

    The locals had also raised slogans- NTPC Murdabad and warned that no political leader should come to the spot anymore.

    Till date, apart from 58 bodies, 23 body parts have been recovered from various spots after February 7 flashfloods while 146 are still missing. 

    Severed limbs, heads, chunk of flesh amidst deposition of muck and waters of Rishi Ganga, Dhauli Ganga, Alaknanda, tributaries, rivulets and various other spots are being recovered by the multi-agency rescue team.

    ALSO READ | Over 300 personnel join Chamoli rescue operations in Uttarakhand

    Navneet Bhullar, Commandant, Uttarakhand State Disaster Response Force who is on ground supervising the teams said, “It is a harrowing sight. The bodies which are found are decomposed, disfigured so the family members and relatives are identifying them by articles wore by them- watches, jewellery, belts and even clothing in some cases.”

    Majority of the body parts of total of 23 include severed limbs. Out of these only one belonging to Vicky Kumar from Saharanpur was identified by his brother. 

    To date, a total of 53 bodies and 20 body parts have been disposed off with suitable last rites and rituals. The police have also registered 52 cases related to the missing people.

    Apart from forming a Whatsapp group to relay and gather the information from the family members of the missing, the police have issued helpline numbers for the families- 01372-251487 and 9084127503. 

    For the majority of the family members of the missing, only hope is the DNA test results.

    Om Prakash, chief secretary of Uttarakhand said commenting on the formation of the artificial lake on Rishi Ganga river, 8kms upstream , from Raini village, said, “The lake is stable and it is draining which is good. We will try to drain it fully to minimise the threat. There is also a proposal to establish a glacial monitoring institute to monitor the glaciers.”

     

  • Chamoli Disaster: More bodies found inside Tapovan tunnel 

    Express News Service
    DEHRADUN: Multi-agency reach operations are still on in tunnels of Tapovan Hydropower Project with 6 bodies recovered on Sunday after clearing sludge from the 180-meter tunnel. 

    Meanwhile, the drilling a hole of 1 ft diameter on the ground of the tunnel has failed, said the officials who were present in the meeting to review the progress of rescue operations. 

    Ravinath Raman, commissioner of Garhwal division of Uttarakhand said, “A total of 13 bodies were recovered today.  Among them, 7 were recovered from Rishi Ganga power plant and 6 from Tapovan tunnel. 155 people are missing. The rescue operations are going on full swing.”

    A total of 51 bodies have been recovered till date including a body part recovered from Rudraprayag on Sunday — over 130kms from the epicentre of Feb 7 flashfloods.

    Chamoli Disaster: Total 51 bodies recovered till date. 13 bodies recovered today- 7 from Raini village, 6 from Tapovan tunnel and one body part from Rudraprayag, over 130kms from epicenter of the Feb 7 flash floods. 155 still missing! @NewIndianXpress @TheMornStandard pic.twitter.com/6flQEO166v
    — Vineet Upadhyay (@VineetTNIE) February 14, 2021

    Swati Bhadauria, district magistrate of Chamoli district told TOI, “We have total 7 ambulances, and a chopper on standby to provide immediate medical assistance and transportation in case anyone is found alive. We are also continuing our relief operations in effected villages using air support.”

    Meanwhile, vertical drilling of Tapovan tunnel with almost 1 feet wide hole to reach Silt Filtration Tunnel (SFT) has been aborted for now after bodies were found in the main tunnel. 

    The officials of the NTPC Limited have also launched an operation in the vicinity of Tapovan barrage to recover bodies of the workers. A video has been doing rounds of the flash floods in which the workers can be seen struggling to escape losing their battle to the unprecedented flash floods. 

    Central Water Commission is conducting simulation studies on the lake formed in the Rishi Ganga river, 8kms upstream from Raini village and also examining the possibility of carrying out a controlled blast to drain out the water. 

    A trolly bridge has also been installed in Tapovan by a combined team of state public works department and the Indian Army which will carry one person at a time are being. The work to install two more bridges is on in Raini and Juwagad village to connect the villages with the rest of the world. 

    The relatives suffer in anticipation waiting for the worst.  Kailash Yadav arrived at the spot from Siwan district of Bihar in the hope to receive at least the mortal remains of his brother Subhash Yadav who worked as a welder in the project.

    “Now I don’t have confidence that he will be found alive. I hope at least his body will be found so that I can take him back to my parents,” said an emotional Kailash.

  • Uttarakhand floods: Change of strategy further delays rescue operations at Tapovan

    Express News Service
    TAPOVAN: The rescue teams at Tapovan have started widening a hole drilled into an approach tunnel on the way to the possible location of over 37 people trapped inside the tunnel of the NTPC’s hydel project.

    After drilling the tunnel ground 12 meter deep and 75mm in diameter, the NTPC began widening it to almost one foot which is estimated to take 8 more hours.

    “The NTPC has decided to increased the diameter of the hole to reach the Silt Flushing Tunnel where the men are suspected to be trapped,” said Ravinath Raman, commissioner of Garhwal division of Uttarakhand.

    ALSO READ| Uttarakhand tragedy: Kin of those trapped in losing hope

    The decision came after the rescue team could not see through any camera device in the SFT.

    The officials also confirmed that the NTPC has confirmed that they have punctured the underground SFT tunnel but all efforts to look inside using camera devices failed as the sludge blocked all efforts to look in. 

    Reports of discontent among state government officials emerged on NTPC officials not being able to devise any strategy which can result in any breakthrough. 

    “Yaar, ye NTPC wale kisi kaam ke nahi. Bs goli de rhe hain! (These NTPC guys are good for nothing. They are just dodging the ball it seems), ” said a senior official from Chamoli district who was present in the meeting taken by commissioner of Garhwal division on Saturday to review the progress of the rescue efforts inside the tunnel by the NTPC Limited.

    ALSO READ: Meet three key women officials working on rescue efforts at Chamoli

    Meanwhile, the rescue teams reached up to 136 metre of the 180-meter tunnel, said the officials. The NTPC officials were also quoted saying that more than 100 scientists are at work to find a way to rescue the trapped men. 

    The state government said the lake which is formed 8 kms upstream from Raini village has around 40-50 meters wide gap through which the water is draining out in a stable manner. The team comprising State Disaster Response Force, National Disaster Response Force, scientists, experts, and geologists visited the lake to asses the ground situation on Friday and Saturday. 

    ALSO READ: New plan to drill hole with large diameter in Tapovan tunnel for camera insertion

    Satellite images along with a spot visit by a group of experts scientists from various institutions of the center and the state revealed that around 65-70 crore litre water has accumulated in the lake. Till date, total 38 bodies have been recovered while 166 are still missing. 

    Nilesh Anand Bharney, incharge of the State Police Disaster Control Room said, “Total 11 bodies have been identified. We have also recovered 18 body parts from the flood-hit areas out of which 24 have been cremated after taking the DNA samples for further identification.”

  • No disagreement, claims Ministry of Environment

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI:  Responding to a news item headlined ‘Ministry vs ministry over future of 6 hydel projects’ published on February 9, the ministry of environment and forests clarified that there was “no disagreement as the news report tries to portray between (the) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and (the) Ministry of Jal Shakti.”

    The clarification further said that an affidavit based on the “agreed position” between the two ministries had been “approved by the secretary, MoEF&CC on January 19, 2021” and this would be filed in the Supreme Court at the next date of hearing in July.

    This newspaper stands by the story as it was based on the separate and contradictory affidavits filed to date by the two ministries since 2016. These affidavits are available in public domain. Moreover, as the ministry of environment and forests has stated, an affidavit on the “agreed position” will be filed in the court only in July. 

  • Geologist claims lake formation in Rishi Ganga river, warns rescue mission could be hampered

    Express News Service
    TAPOVAN: Lake formation has occurred in Rishi Ganga river situated around 8 kms from Raini village which was the epicentre of the recent flash floods, a geologist claimed in a video that surfaced on Thursday.

    Geologist Naresh Rana of the Hemvanti Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, Srinagar added that this development can hamper rescue efforts and hurt those involved in the rescue operations.

    In the video he explained that “the flood created a temporary damming which blocked the Rishi Ganga from forming the lake.”

    A slight breach to this temporary situation can unleash havoc to those downstream, he added.

    “This can hamper the rescue efforts and it can hurt people who are involved in rescue operations. I am going to inform the administration so that they can conduct and aerial survey so that the correct size of the lake is determined,” says Rana.

    ALSO READ | Chamoli rescue mission: Delay, disruption render changed strategy futile

    The officials have also brought to light reports of a lake formation in Rishi Ganga river.

    “A meeting has was held in this regard in Delhi. We will act as per the instructions of the higher authorities in this regard,” said Ravinath Raman, commissioner of the Garhwal division of Uttarakhand.

    Navin Juyal, another geologist who was with Rana during his visit said, “We have informed the authorities about the lake.”

    Officials said that scientists and experts from across Uttarakhand and other parts of the country are investigating the reasons behind the calamity which has engulfed hundreds of lives.

    “We have scientists, experts, geologists, glaciologists working to determine the cause of the floods. We will soon know what happened to cause this unfortunate event,” added the commissioner.