5,000 still stuck in Badrinath

Officials hopeful of clearance in next few days

Even as rescue operations in Uttarakhand continue by air and road, about 5,000 people are still stuck in Badrinath. A K Sinha, deputy inspector general of the state police, said though arrivals here were few, about 800 people were evacuated from Badrinath.

“About 400 people were rescued by air and another 400 by road. Sorties are happening continuously between Badrinath and Joshimath,” said Sinha, who is overseeing rescue operations here. The road up to Joshimath has been cleared and those who have their own vehicles are moving out. For mass transport, the government has arranged for buses and smaller vehicles.

“More than 5000 people are still there in Badrinath. But their food and shelter needs are taken care of. We’ll clear them in a day or two,” Sinha said, adding rescue operations in the Kedarnath circuit were almost complete. “There’s nobody left. We are trying to search the area after yesterday’s air crash.”

Yesterday, an army helicopter had crashed near Kedarnath, killing 19 people. Tough weather in the areas adjoining Kedarnath has delayed mass cremation of corpses piling up in the mountains. Cremation material such as firewood and ghee are lying at the air base, which is lined up with hundreds of army and relief vehicles, along numerous makeshift camps of doctors, army officials and relief workers.

A group of 47 people arrived in one of the few landings in Gauchar on Wednesday. Priti Kadel, who was part of the group said, “We got to come after waiting for 5 days on the road in Joshimath. Things have become little more organised after the army came,” she said.

Kadel, her brothers and parents left for Dehradun after their details were recorded by several groups of officials. Detailed profiling is done of the arrivals including the amount of cash being carried by the rescued people.

Two sadhus who arrived earlier in the day were caught with over Rs 73,000 in cash. The Sadhus were not able explain the source of the money convincingly. “It is our own money which had been given to us by devotees over several years,” one of the sadhus said.

But, the police here are not convinced as several complaints have been received of looting in the flood affected areas.

Though arrangements are made for arrivals to travel by road to Haridwar and Dehradun, not many are willing to take further risks on the delicate road route, which is littered with landslides all the way up to Rishikesh.