Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Sunday said that tourists who were stranded in Lahaul Valley following flash floods have been rescued.
“The newly-acquired chopper by the government was deployed to ferry people, including tourists, stranded in Udaipur subdivision in Lahaul-Spiti district,” Thakur said while talking to the mediapersons here.
He said that in the recent flash flood incident in Lahaul, out of 10 drowned people, 7 bodies were recovered while three are still missing. There were more than 200 people stranded in Lahaul. While 178 were rescued on Saturday, work to rescue the remaining people continued on Sunday with the help of helicopter, he
said.
He also said that connectivity has still not been restored in regions like Udaipur Valley in Lahaul.
Due to flash floods, ten people have died in Kangra while earlier nine people had died in Kinnaur, he
added.
Thakur commended Border Road Organization (BRO), National Disaster Response Force and the police for their efforts in the rescue operation.
He also said that efforts are being made to safely transport the cash crops and vegetables cultivated by farmers in Lahaul Valley to the markets so that they would not face any economic losses.
The evacuation was carried out from Udaipur, Fuda, Trilokinath, and Jahlman and the people were transported to Manali in public transport.A total of 178 people, comprising tourists from New Delhi, Punjab, Odisha and Maharashtra, were rescued by road from various places on Saturday.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and the local administration were deployed for the rescue operation.
The Chief Minister had in a meeting held on Saturday sought a detailed report from PWD, Jal Shakti Vibhag, HPSEB, Agriculture and Horticulture of Lahaul-Spiti district on losses occurred due to flash floods.
He had also directed Jal Shakti Vibhag to prepare a holistic and sustainable plan based on modern scientific studies for providing drinking water supply throughout the year.
Thakur asked the officers to prepare a damage report regarding damage in Spiti sub division.
The Chief Minister also asked the BRO Commandant to ensure a timeline for restoration of the main road in Udaipur area.