Uttarakhand Avalanche: A Surprise In Low Snowfall Season; 50 Trapped Workers Rescued

Short of three kilometers from Badrinath, the Hindu holy place, one of the four sites of India's Char Dham pilgrimage, Mana, the avalanche-hit last village on the Indo-Tibet border, is fighting hard to see the trapped Border Roads Organisation (BRO) workers coming out safe at Uttarakhand's Chamoli district.

So far, 50 workers out of the trapped 55, have already been rescued safely and shifted to the hospital while the rescue operation, undertaken at the ill-fated site, is currently going on in full swing at a height of 10,500 feet.

“Our ground teams of rescue workers of ITBP, Army, and BRO, along with requisite equipment are already in full action for the search and rescue of the five missing workers left to be saved. 50 labourers have been rescued so far", Deputy Commissioner Chamoli Sandeep Tewari said over the phone.

While sources said that four rescued workers have succumbed to their fatal injuries, the official announcement is still awaited on that matter. When asked about any report on casualty, Tewari said, "The doctors have not confirmed yet."

Heavy snowfall and the freezing cold temperature had halted the operation temporarily on Friday. The road disruption also caused further delays in accessibility. However, things moved positively when the weather cleared up this morning and snowfall stopped as well.

On Saturday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also flew to Joshimath where he held meetings with senior officials and met some of the rescued workers at the Military hospital.

“Till Saturday morning, 47 of the 55 workers trapped under the snow have been rescued. I am very hopeful that we will save all the workers. The rescue workers of ITBP, BRO, Army, and district administration are on the job braving heavy snowfall up to 8 feet ” the CM said after his return to Dehradun. He also conducted an aerial survey of the area and briefed the Prime Minister라이브 바카라 Office (PMO) this morning.

The news at 2 pm confirmed the rescue of 50 labourers. State Disaster Management Department Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman told 바카라 that the snow avalanche came down on the BRO camp with force from the height. The site had never been on the list of the avalanche-prone spots. He also said that 50 labourers have been rescued so far. 

Bhagat Singh Badwal, a former Pradhan of Chamoli panchayat said, "The private company which had brought the workers from different places, including Uttarakhand, Bihar, UP, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh, did not consult the villagers before sitting-up camp at a vulnerable site. The villagers could have advised them about a safer site. This could be one mistake.”

He also informed that a majority of people from Mana village migrate to lower heights in the Gopeshwar area annually during the winter months starting in November. But, after BRO started working on double laning the road up to the last border point, the private contractor had brought workers to step up construction activity in the winters as well.

"Because the winters this year did not see major snowfalls as used to happen earlier, the BRO did not halt the work. The labour camp was a little 500-600 meters away from Mana village. The avalanche happened due to a sudden change of weather and heavy snowfall" said a senior official of the district administration.

According to Badwal, the village has a population of 1,300 people and most of them are engaged in tiny enterprises related to selling handicraft and woolen articles to tourists, apart from the local products. The movement of tourists and pilgrims starts in April-May after the opening of the Kedarnath temple. The landholdings are small. Only a few crops like potatoes, vegetables, and buckwheat are the only source of livelihood for the villagers.

He also said that the Army people knew about all the avalanche-prone areas. Their camps are normally at safer sites.

Meanwhile, among the rescued workers were two cousins from Nainital- Naresh Bisht and Dixit Bisht- who thanked the rescue teams for saving their lives.

Their father, Dhan Singh Bisht later said that when he spoke to Naresh at 8 pm on Friday evening, Naresh explained the situation. "Both my son and nephew are fine, both are admitted to the Army Hospital", he said while Naresh's mother Durga also added, "Our son is absolutely fine and has also talked to the nephew, both are absolutely fine. With the blessings of our goddess, both our children are perfect today."

Situated along the Alaknanda River, Mana is mythologically linked to the epic Mahabharat. It is said that the Pandavas had walked past the village on their way to heaven.

When contacted, S S Negi, a retired Indian Forest Service (IFS), who headed the Uttarakhand government's Migration commission, said the Mana village is rich in history and thus has a large population. Until 1960, the village was thriving on India-Tibet bilateral trade. The most common trade items used to be beech wheat, barley, and rock salt. After the war, the border trade stopped. But, now the villagers are engaged in selling handicraft items to the tourists coming in this route to visit Kedarnath-Badrinath.