Four months after Dharali disaster, 147 bodies still buried: Colonel

Don't want to miss the best from Business Standard?

BJP leader Colonel (retired) Ajay Kothiyal has expressed regret that even four months after the cloudburst in Dharali of Uttarkashi district, the bodies of 147 people buried under the debris could not be recovered.

"If the Army rescued seven out of 10 soldiers buried under the debris in Harshil, then why can't we rescue the 147 people buried in Dharali?" he asked, while participating in a discussion at the 'World Summit on Disaster Management' organised in Dehradun by Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology two days ago.

Kothiyal alleged that nearly four months after the natural calamity, Dharali is still in tatters.

Instead of finding proper ways for rehabilitation of the people there, disaster management officials, geologists, scientists and environmental experts are finding excuses to avoid the challenges, he alleged.

On August 5 this year, a massive cloudburst over Dharali village in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand resulted in devastating floods and mudslides, nearly erasing the village and causing significant loss to life and property.

The opposition Congress said the statement of Colonel Kothiyal, who was famed for his commendable work during rescue and search operation after the Kedarnath disaster, exposed the BJP-led state government, and demanded an answer from Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.

The ruling BJP also said the statement should be considered seriously and appropriate action should be taken.

After the disaster, the state government had said that one person died and 68 others went missing in the massive flood in Kheergad due to cloudburst in Dharali.

"So far, not a single spot in Dharali has been worked on. Forget construction, some effort should be made. Houses are buried there, my children's degrees are lying there, my wife's mangalsutra is buried there. How can I abandon that place? We cannot tell our 147 people that we will leave them," Colonel Kothiyal said.