News Analysis India

Tag: Indo-Tibetan Border Police

  • ITBP women become captains of their ponies & dogs

    Express News Service

    BHANU (Panchkula): You can’t separate care from a woman, and the element of security and protection from her. Eight women personnel of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) have committed themselves to nurture a unique bonding with their ponies and dogs to make loyal soldiers out of the animals.

    These days the women are learning to move ration and other goods through ponies at border outposts (BOPs).

    They have also become dog handlers captaining their K9 teams that will be deployed as Patrol Explosive Detection Dogs (PEDD).

    This is the first time the glass ceiling has been broken in the field of dog handling and animal transport in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs). The paramilitary force has the distinction of being the first CAPF in the country to induct eight women into the Animal Wing of the force.

    They can be deployed anywhere where their audacious ‘soldiers’ can detect explosives and challenge their adversaries in Maoist hideouts in eastern and south-central India.

    The women personnel finished their training for dog handling in January this year and will finish their training for animal transport by this weekend.

    They will now be deployed with their faithful Malinois dogs that have passed out from the ITBP National Training Centre for Dogs (NTCD) at Basic Training Centre (BTC), Bhanunear Panchkula (Haryana).

    “These lovely dogs are named Tuffy, Rony, Spark, Axl, Charlie, Juli, Merry and Anny,’’ said an officer.

    Sources said that these women have also been taught horse management, training in the loading of ponies and various aspects of the movement of loaded ponies along with horse riding.

    Talking with this newspaper, Ishwar Singh Duhan Inspector General of the Basic Training Centre of ITBP in Bhanu said earlier these women were recruited in the ITBP’s medical, clerical and education cadre.

    “These new inductees have undergone vigorous training by developing an understanding with their pups. The pups were trained for three-month basic obedience, learning how to follow commands. Finally, they learn explosive detection for three months. Each day, they are trained for at least six hours,’’ said Duhan.

    The officer said dogs are keener to obey the voice command of women than men as women are more caring and loving in nature.

    “Our confidence levels have increased tremendously in the handling of the animals. Only through rigorous training, we learn to overcome our fear of a big horse,” said a trainee constable, Pratibha. Aid dogs are keener to obey the voice command of women than men as women are more caring and loving in nature.

    Since this National Centre for Training of Dogs and Animals was established by the ITBP at Bhanu around 2,500 dogs of various forces have been trained here.

    BHANU (Panchkula): You can’t separate care from a woman, and the element of security and protection from her. Eight women personnel of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) have committed themselves to nurture a unique bonding with their ponies and dogs to make loyal soldiers out of the animals.

    These days the women are learning to move ration and other goods through ponies at border outposts (BOPs).

    They have also become dog handlers captaining their K9 teams that will be deployed as Patrol Explosive Detection Dogs (PEDD).googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    This is the first time the glass ceiling has been broken in the field of dog handling and animal transport in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs). The paramilitary force has the distinction of being the first CAPF in the country to induct eight women into the Animal Wing of the force.

    They can be deployed anywhere where their audacious ‘soldiers’ can detect explosives and challenge their adversaries in Maoist hideouts in eastern and south-central India.

    The women personnel finished their training for dog handling in January this year and will finish their training for animal transport by this weekend.

    They will now be deployed with their faithful Malinois dogs that have passed out from the ITBP National Training Centre for Dogs (NTCD) at Basic Training Centre (BTC), Bhanunear Panchkula (Haryana).

    “These lovely dogs are named Tuffy, Rony, Spark, Axl, Charlie, Juli, Merry and Anny,’’ said an officer.

    Sources said that these women have also been taught horse management, training in the loading of ponies and various aspects of the movement of loaded ponies along with horse riding.

    Talking with this newspaper, Ishwar Singh Duhan Inspector General of the Basic Training Centre of ITBP in Bhanu said earlier these women were recruited in the ITBP’s medical, clerical and education cadre.

    “These new inductees have undergone vigorous training by developing an understanding with their pups. The pups were trained for three-month basic obedience, learning how to follow commands. Finally, they learn explosive detection for three months. Each day, they are trained for at least six hours,’’ said Duhan.

    The officer said dogs are keener to obey the voice command of women than men as women are more caring and loving in nature.

    “Our confidence levels have increased tremendously in the handling of the animals. Only through rigorous training, we learn to overcome our fear of a big horse,” said a trainee constable, Pratibha. Aid dogs are keener to obey the voice command of women than men as women are more caring and loving in nature.

    Since this National Centre for Training of Dogs and Animals was established by the ITBP at Bhanu around 2,500 dogs of various forces have been trained here.

  • China threat: ITBP to build tracks along border; India to firm up theaterisation plan likely by mid-2022

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  In a first, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police will construct roads and foot tracks along the Line of Actual Control to boost connectivity projects with its posts in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh.

    The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has given a go-ahead to the force to deploy its specialised engineering wing for constructing certain roads along the LAC, amid a military standoff with China in eastern Ladakh.

    Of the total 32 roads sanctioned under phase-II of the India-China Border Roads project, the ITBP will construct four and of the 18 foot tracks sanctioned, it will built two tracks, sources said.

    The roads of the lengths of about one-two km mainly fall in Ladakh region whereas the foot tracks, used by troops during patrols, are in Arunachal.

    Usually, road construction projects along these areas are carried out by Border Roads Organisation, Central Public Works Department and other such agencies.

    Officials said the ITBP’s engineering wing has been roped in for the task in order to speed up the border posts connectivity work. 

    India is likely to firm up by the middle of next year a roadmap for rolling out the ambitious theatre commands that are expected to ensure optimum utilisation of the military resources and enhance the country’s war-fighting capability, people familiar with the developments said on Sunday.

    The actual operationalisation of the theatre commands may take two to three years, they said.

    According to the plan, each of the theatre commands will have units of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force and all of them will work as a single entity looking after security challenges in a specified geographical territory under an operational commander.

    At present, the Army, Navy and the Air Force have separate commands.

    Initially, a plan was firmed up for the creation of an Air Defence Command and Maritime Theatre Command.

    The theatre commands are being planned to integrate the capabilities of the three services and to ensure optimal utilisation of their resources.

    Recently, the department of military affairs (DMA) asked the three services to complete their studies on the proposed theatre commands by April so that the plan to create the new structures can be expedited, the people cited above said.

    “A roadmap for implementation of the plan to roll out the theatre commands is likely to be firmed up by the middle of next year,” said one of the people.

    Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat has been working on the theaterisation model under which new integrated commands are being envisaged.

    The theatre commands are being set up under a larger mandate of ensuring synergy among the three service chiefs to deal with future security challenges.

    Gen Rawat took over as India’s first CDS on January 1, 2020, with a mandate to bring in convergence among the three services and restructure military commands to effectively deal with future security challenges.

    Separately, the Army is also working on raising new combat formations called the Integrated Battle Groups (IBGs) to further bolster its combat prowess.

    The IBG, which aims to integrate different components of the Army into the new formation, will include artillery guns, tanks, air defence and logistical elements.

    Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen Manoj Pande last month said that an in-principle approval has been given to the IBGs which can be mobilised fast.

    The Army has already carried out extensive test-bedding of the IBG concept.

    The IBGs are likely to be headed by Major General-rank officers and could have troops numbering 5,000.

    (With PTI Inputs)

  • ITBP deploys own engineering wing to construct Indo-China border roads, foot tracks

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has taken a first-time decision to deploy its specialised engineering wing for constructing certain roads and foot tracks along the Line of Actual Control to speed up connectivity projects with its posts in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh.

    The move, which was approved by the Union home ministry, comes amid a military standoff with China in the eastern Ladakh area.

    Official sources told PTI that the border force, ITBP, has taken up the “challenge” to construct four out of the 32 roads under phase-II of the India-China Border Roads project and two out of the total 18 foot tracks sanctioned to it by the government.

    They said the roads of varying lengths of about one to two kilometres, connecting ITBP border posts in the Himalayan ranges, are in the Ladakh region’s 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China while the foot tracks, which are used by troops during patrols, are in the Arunachal Pradesh area.

    The engineers and supervisors of the ITBP wing will “plan and monitor” the entire work, and a ground force comprising labourers and masons will be hired according to government norms, sources said.

    Traditionally, road construction projects along these areas are carried out by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and other such agencies.

    Officials said the engineering wing of the force, an essential component of the ITBP since its raising in 1962, has been roped in for the task in order to speed up the border posts connectivity work.

    In these high-altitude and remote areas, getting contractors and construction workers is not that easy and hence, the work of border road construction remains slow, an officer explained.

    The government has stressed on the need to ensure connectivity through roads so that rations, transportation of troops and other logistics along the LAC can be easily moved.

    Therefore, this maiden attempt of engaging the ITBP engineering wing has been made, he said.

    The ITBP engineering wing, restructured over the years, is tasked to “take care of the construction of operational structures, including border outposts, residential and office buildings, solar lightings, power units and water heating systems, improvised micro-hydel power projects and green houses in snow-clad border areas apart from devising strategic defences around a border post.”

    Currently, the government has initiated the phase-II of the Indo-China Border Roads (ICBR) project that covers several roads, foot tracks and border posts.

    The first phase of ICBR was launched in 2005 under the overall supervision of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and work on a number of roads, helipads and troop bases of this period is underway.

    According to official data, 538.50 kilometres of road have been laid along the China border till November last year.

    Union Minister of State for Home affairs Nityanand Rai had recently said during the 60th ITBP raising day on October 24 that the process to sanction new border battalions for the ITBP is in the “last stages”.

    He was referring to the last year central government sanction of 47 new border posts and a dozen staging camps (operational bases for troops undertaking border patrol) to the mountain-warfare trained paramilitary force.

    The about 90,000 personnel-strong ITBP was raised in the aftermath of the 1962 Chinese aggression.

  • 20 ITBP troops given gallantry medals for standoff clashes with China in Ladakh

    By PTI

    GREATER NOIDA: Twenty personnel of the India-China LAC guarding Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force, who displayed bravery during the violent clashes and ongoing military standoff between the two countries in the eastern Ladakh region in May-June 2020, were on Sunday decorated with police gallantry medals.

    Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai pinned the medals on the chests of the personnel and handed them certificates during the 60th Raising Day celebrations of the force here.

    These medals were announced on the eve of the Independence Day on August 14 this year.

    The central paramilitary is deployed shoulder-to-shoulder with the Army as part of its primary mandate to guard the 3,488 km-long icy Line of Actual Control (LAC).

    Out of the 20, eight personnel have been awarded the police medal for gallantry (PMG) for their gallant act, meticulous planning and tactical insightfulness and for defending the motherland in Galwan Nalla on June 15 last year, an spokesperson for the force said.

    Six personnel have been awarded with the PMG for gallant action during violent face-off on May 18 in the Finger IV area while the rest six have been decorated with the same medal for their gallant action near Hot Springs in Ladakh on the same day, the force had said earlier.

    It had said that in eastern Ladakh, the ITBP troops not only effectively used shields to protect themselves but also responded fiercely to Chinese PLA advancing troops and brought the situation under control during “fierce” face offs and skirmishes.

    “With highest order of professional skills, ITBP troops fought shoulder-to-shoulder and also brought the injured (Army) troops to the rear.

    “Even when the ITBP troops fought the whole night, they received minimum casualties by giving befitting reply to the stone pelters of the PLA,” the force said in their citation.

    At certain places, it said, they gave a “determined” standoff for about 17-20 hours throughout the intervening night (June 15-16) in extremely challenging conditions.

    “Due to the high-altitude training and survival experience of the force at the icy Himalayan deployments, ITBP troops kept the PLA troops at bay and due to the all out and befitting response of ITBP troops at several fronts, many areas were safeguarded.

    “The ITBP troops showed highest level of devotion, courage, determination, utter disregard to personal safety even in injured condition and exhibited great professional skills in the face of violent physical scuffle with the PLA,” it had said.

    Twenty Army soldiers were killed during these clashes while China has claimed the casualty figures on its side to be five, which is widely believed to be much higher.

    Three other ITBP personnel were also decorated with the PMG for displaying courage, grit and determination in anti-Naxal operations in Chhattisgarh.

    Deputy Inspector General (veterinary) Sudhakar Natarajan was also decorated with the police medal for meritorious service during the event for rendering exceptional service in the animal transport wing of the force, the lifeline for ensuring rations and logistics to its mountainous border deployments.

    Natarajan, who joined the ITBP in 1992, is credited with introducing the first batch of Belgian Malinois infantry patrol dogs in the ITBP, which was followed by all other Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).

    The about 90,000 personnel strong ITBP was raised on this day in 1962 in the aftermath of the Chinese agression.

  • Chhattisgarh: ITBP jawan injured in Naxal firing in Narayanpur

    By PTI

    NARAYANPUR: An Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) trooper was injured after Naxals fired at him in Chhattisgarh’s insurgency-hit Narayanpur district on Friday, police said.

    The incident took place at around 3pm when constable Sandeep Kumar, belonging to ITBP’s 53rd battalion, was on duty at the mobile check post in front his unit’s camp in Kohkameta village, a senior official said.

    “A small action team of ultras fired at the jawan, which led to an exchange of fire. The ultras, however, fled soon after from the spot. The constable sustained a bullet injury near his left shoulder and was treated at the district hospital. He is out of danger,” the official said.

    A search operation has been launched to nab the culprits, he added.

  • Seventy-eight Afghanistan evacuees released from ITBP quarantine centre

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Seventy-eight people including Afghan nationals, who were evacuated from Afghanistan after Kabul fell to Taliban last month, were on Tuesday discharged from an ITBP facility here after they completed a 14-day quarantine rule in place to check the spread of coronavirus infection.

    The group includes 53 people from Afghanistan (34 men, nine women and 10 children), and 25 Indians (18 men, five women and 12 children), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said.

    They were handed over medical certificates and a red rose as they left the facility.

    These people were brought to this COVID-19 quarantine facility located in south-west Delhi’s Chhawla area on August 24 after they landed here onboard an evacuation flight operated by the Indian Air Force.

    The Afghan nationals have been sent to a designated location in south Delhi while the Indians are expected to go to their homes, a senior officer said.

    The facility still has 35 people, who returned from Afghanistan, under quarantine that includes 24 Indians and the rest from Nepal.

    This group is also expected to be discharged similarly on Wednesday, at the end of their 14-days quarantine period as mandated under existing COVID-19 medical protocol, the officer said.

    This ITBP quarantine centre was operationalised last year soon after the outbreak of COVID-19 and it has hosted over 1,200 people including foreigners from at least eight countries till now.

    The first batch of Indians and some foreigners returning from Wuhan in China were also quarantined here last year.

    The ITBP is a border guarding force under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and it is primarily tasked to guard the 3,488 km long Line of Actual Control with China apart from rendering a variety of roles in the internal security domain of the country.

  • Chhattisgarh Naxal attack: Assistant commandant among two ITBP personnel killed

    By PTI

    NARAYANPUR: An assistant commandant of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and his colleague were killed in a Naxal attack in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district on Friday, a senior police official said.

    The incident took place around 12.10 pm near Kademeta camp of 45th battalion of the ITBP under Chhotedongar police station limits, Inspector General of Police (Bastar range) Sundarraj P.

    As per the preliminary information, a squad of the ITBP’s 45th battalion, which was out on an area domination operation, was fired upon by a small action team of the ultras, when it was approximately 600 metres away from the camp, he said.

    “Assistant Commandant Sudhakar Shinde and Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Gurmukh Singh, both from the ITBP’s 45th battalion, were martyred in the firing,” the IG said.

    After the attack, the Naxals also looted and escaped with one AK-47 rifle, two bullet-proof jackets and one wireless set of the security personnel, he said.

    Reinforcement has been rushed to the spot and the bodies of martyred personnel were being evacuated, he added.

  • Kinnaur landslide: Death toll reaches 14 as four more bodies recovered

    By PTI

    SHIMLA: Four more bodies were recovered from the landslide site in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district where the search and rescue operation resumed early on Thursday, raising the death toll to 14, officials said.

    Four more bodies were recovered from the spot after the rescue operation resumed, Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq told PTI.

    He said 14 bodies have been recovered so far.

    The Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus, which, along with other vehicles, was buried under the debris after the landslide, has been found in a badly damaged condition, State Disaster Management Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said.

    However, a Bolero car still could not be traced, he added.

    The HRTC bus was on its way from Reckong Peo to Haridwar via Shimla when it was hit by boulders after the landslide around Wednesday noon near Chaura village on national highway-5 in Nigulsari area of Nichar tehsil.

    A video of the rescue workers at the site near the mangled remains of the bus has gone viral whereby a rescuer is heard saying that the bus was found by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) 17th Battalion personnel.

    Another rescuer states that gloves should be brought for further carrying the operation.

    The rescue operation, being carried out jointly by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the ITBP and the members of local police and home guards, resumed at 6 am on Thursday, Mokhta said.

    The authorities had suspended the operation on Wednesday at around 10 pm.

    Ten bodies were recovered on Wednesday, while 13 others were rescued with injuries.

    Several others are still feared buried under the debris.

    However the exact number was not known.

    On Wednesday, the Bhawanagar station house officer (SHO) had said around 25 to 30 people were trapped under the debris.

    When the initial reports came, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had told the state assembly that 50-60 people were feared trapped under the debris but the exact number was not known.

    The Kinnaur deputy commissioner had also told PTI that over 40 passengers were in the bus.

    Eight of the dead were found trapped in a Tata Sumo taxi during the search and rescue operation on Wednesday.

    A truck rolled down towards a riverside due to shooting stones and the driver’s body has been recovered, officials said.

    A car had also been found in the damaged condition on Wednesday but no one was found in it, they added.

  • Kinnaur landslide: Death toll reaches 13 as four more bodies recovered

    By PTI

    SHIMLA: Four more bodies were recovered from the landslide site in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district where the search and rescue operation resumed early on Thursday, raising the death toll to 14, officials said.

    Four more bodies were recovered from the spot after the rescue operation resumed, Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq told PTI.

    He said 14 bodies have been recovered so far.

    The Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus, which, along with other vehicles, was buried under the debris after the landslide, has been found in a badly damaged condition, State Disaster Management Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said.

    However, a Bolero car still could not be traced, he added.

    The HRTC bus was on its way from Reckong Peo to Haridwar via Shimla when it was hit by boulders after the landslide around Wednesday noon near Chaura village on national highway-5 in Nigulsari area of Nichar tehsil.

    A video of the rescue workers at the site near the mangled remains of the bus has gone viral whereby a rescuer is heard saying that the bus was found by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) 17th Battalion personnel.

    Another rescuer states that gloves should be brought for further carrying the operation.

    The rescue operation, being carried out jointly by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the ITBP and the members of local police and home guards, resumed at 6 am on Thursday, Mokhta said.

    The authorities had suspended the operation on Wednesday at around 10 pm.

    Ten bodies were recovered on Wednesday, while 13 others were rescued with injuries.

    Several others are still feared buried under the debris.

    However the exact number was not known.

    On Wednesday, the Bhawanagar station house officer (SHO) had said around 25 to 30 people were trapped under the debris.

    When the initial reports came, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had told the state assembly that 50-60 people were feared trapped under the debris but the exact number was not known.

    The Kinnaur deputy commissioner had also told PTI that over 40 passengers were in the bus.

    Eight of the dead were found trapped in a Tata Sumo taxi during the search and rescue operation on Wednesday.

    A truck rolled down towards a riverside due to shooting stones and the driver’s body has been recovered, officials said.

    A car had also been found in the damaged condition on Wednesday but no one was found in it, they added.

  • Kinnaur landslide: Death toll reaches 13 as ITBP retrieves one more body

    By PTI

    SHIMLA: The death toll due to the landslide at Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh rose to 13 after the retrieval of another body on Thursday early morning by ITBP.

    The search and rescue operation for the Kinnaur landslide victims trapped in a Himachal Road Transport Corporation bus and a Bolero was resumed early on Thursday, a state disaster management official said.

    The rescue work resumed on Thursday at 6 am, the state Disaster Management Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said.

    The rescue operation is being carried out jointly by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the members of local police and home guards, he added.

    The authorities had suspended the operation Wednesday at around 10 pm.

    The HRTC bus, which had been on its way from Reckong Peo to Haridwar via Shimla, was hit by the boulders after Wednesday landslide around noon near Chaura village on national highway number five in Nigulsari area of Nichar tehsil.

    While 13 were rescued with injuries, several others are feared buried under the debris after the landslide trapped the bus and other vehicles on Wednesday.

    The number of dead may further increase as the HRTC bus and the Bolero and its passengers were not found under the debris and are still untraceable.

    It might be possible that both the vehicles rolled down with the debris, he added.

    Eight of the dead were found trapped in a Tata Sumo taxi during the search and rescue operation on Wednesday itself.

    A truck rolled down towards a riverside due to shooting stones and the driver’s body was recovered on Wednesday.

    A fully damaged Alto car was recovered on Wednesday but no one was found inside the car.

    A video clip captured the horror of the moment.

    First, shooting stones fell down the mountainside into the river below, creating small splashes of water.

    Warming whistles were heard and then a big chunk of the mountain collapsed on National Highway 5 and into the river.

    Fighting to complete the operation before nightfall, rescue workers struggled to pull out survivors and bodies from the debris near Chaura village in Nigulsari area of Nichar tehsil.

    Hours after the landslide a little before noon, Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq told PTI that 10 bodies had been pulled out and others were feared trapped.

    Eight of the dead were found trapped in a Tata Sumo taxi, according to state disaster management director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta.

    A Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus, which was on its way from Reckong Peo to Haridwar via Shimla, was still buried under the debris, he said.

    The official said the number of the dead may further increase as another HRTC bus and a Bolero and its passengers were not found under the debris and are still untraceable.

    It might be possible that both the vehicles rolled down with the debris, he added.

    Meanwhile, the authorities suspended the search operation at around 10 pm and it will be resumed Thursday morning.

    Mokhta also said that a Tata Sumo has been found in which eight persons were found dead.

    He said a truck rolled down towards a riverside due to shooting stones and the driver’s body has been recovered.

    A fully damaged Alto car has also been recovered, he said, adding that no one was found inside the car.

    Early reports said there could be up to 40 people in the state-run bus.

    Earlier, the Bhawanagar station house officer (SHO) said around 25 to 30 were trapped under the debris.

    When the initial reports came, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur told the state assembly that 50-60 people were feared trapped under the debris, but the exact number was not known.

    He said Union Home Minister Amit Shah talked to him and the topmost priority as of now was to rescue those trapped and provide them the best possible treatment.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to Thakur over the incident.

    “PM @narendramodi spoke to Himachal Pradesh CM @jairamthakurbjp regarding the situation in the wake of the landslide in Kinnaur.

    PM assured all possible support in the ongoing rescue operations,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

    Shah also spoke to Thakur to take stock of the situation and directed the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) to provide all assistance to the state government in rescue and relief operations.

    Thakur told the Assembly that a helicopter was also being arranged for the rescue operation.

    The chief minister said the landslide occurred when there was no rainfall.

    Among the dead are a two-year-old girl and five women, a state official spokesperson said.

    Two of the dead were identified as Rohit Kumar (25), a resident of Kaiya village at Rampur in Shimla; and Vijay Kumar (32) of Jhol village in Sujanpur of Hamirpur district, Mokhta said.

    The eight dead found in Tata Sumo have been identified as two-year-old girl Vanshuka of Sapni in Sangla tehsil of Kinnaur; Meera Devi, Nitisha, Prem kumari (42), Gyan Dassi, Devi Chand (53), all from Kinnaur district; and Kammlesh Kumar (34) of Rechuta village in Solan.

    One dead person is yet to be identified, Mokhta added.

    The injured were identified as bus driver Mahinder Pal, a resident of Bilaspur; conductor Gulab Singh of Mandi; Prashant, Varun Menon, Rajender of Hamirpur, Daulat of Kinnaur, Shorang Project driver Charan Jeet Singh of Naleenakal in Punjab’s Fatehgarh Sahib, Saveen Sharma of Nepal, Japti Devi of Rampur in Shimla, Chander Gyan of Pooh in Kinnaur, Arun of Rampur, Anil Kumar and Kaizang Negi of Skibba at Moorang in Kinnaur.

    They have been shifted to a Bhawanagar community health centre (CHC) for treatment, officials added.

    The state disaster management authority has requisitioned the NDRF from Nurpur for the search and rescue operation, Mokhta said.

    District officials, search and rescue teams, including members of local police, home guards, NDRF, ITBP and a medical team are at the incident site, he said.

    Ten ambulances, four earth removers, 52 personnel of the ITBP’s 17th Battalion, 30 personnel of police and 27 NDRF personnel are carrying out the rescue operation, he added.

    Officials said the bodies have been sent for autopsy.

    Earlier on July 25, nine people were killed and three others injured in multiple landslides near Batseri in Kinnaur district.

    Similarly on July 27, at least eight people died, two were injured and two went missing in flash floods triggered by a cloudburst in Lahaul-Spiti district.

    Jal Shakti Minister Mahender Singh Thakur had informed the state Assembly on August 4 that 218 people died and 12 went missing in Himachal Pradesh this monsoon season.