Uttarakhand Vidhan Sabha Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal on Saturday categorically said that the number of people including pilgrims and local residents killed in Uttarakhand cloudbursts and flash floods during June 16-17 may cross 10,000 mark.
Talking to The Pioneer from Dharchula (Pithoragarh), Kunjwal accepted that State Government machinery failed to provide relief on time after the disaster. Had they got information on time, the State Government would have convened a Cabinet meeting on disaster only on June 17. It is enough to believe that Government was not properly informed by the different agencies, who are suppose to pass input to the State Government. He further added, “This is not appropriate time to criticise but my contention is that still we can do better.”
“After visiting Garhwal region Joshimath and Agastyamuni via road, soon after the disaster, earlier I told that disaster may have claimed 4,000 to 5,000 lives. But now on the basis of bodies being seen by the people and information by the locals including rescued person, I can say the figure may cross the 10,000 mark,” Kunjwal added.
Moreover, even after a fortnight of the tragedy, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna still saying that it is feared that over 1,000 people might have been killed in the natural calamity. According to him, the exact number of people killed will be known only after the removal of debris, which is impossible because it has spread over more than 50 kilometre areas.
Intensity of the casualties can be gauged from the fact that few dozens bodies recovered in Haridwar and Allahabad. If this is true that the body, which recovered in Allahabad, floated from Kedarnath, then it would be impossible to ascertain the death toll officially. Condemning the agency, which is suppose to procure information from all channels and pass to the Government, Kunjwal said, “The agency failed to provide information on time. Had they managed to have the actual information, State would have taken serious step for rescue and relief that was started on massive scale after four days. If the relief work had begun soon after the disaster, several lives, who died of starvation, after managing to escape June 16-17 nature’s fury.”
“As per the media reports and my tour to disaster-affected areas, we can say that death toll would be more than 10,000.” He also expressed doubt that Government machinery would be able to retrieve the bodies, which are lying in more than 14 kilometres long areas or stuck in cave or giant trunk of trees, so he appealed the State Government to dispose of the bodies in view of threat of an epidemic.
Although he refused to make a comment on property loss but he said that he himself visiting in different location to understand the loss due to nature’s calamity. As a part of it he was travelling in Dharchula, Pithorgarh district. He further said that currently he is in Dharchula to assess the damage.