With no information coming from the administration about their missing kin, they are preparing to visit Kedarnath and Rambada and scour tonnes of debris lying in these areas in search of the bodies of their relatives so that they can perform their last rites.
With the weather clear at most places across Uttarakhand over the past few days, 64 more bodies were found lying over the ridges in Kedar valley and cremated with necessary rituals, a senior police officer said on Thursday.
However, the team despatched to Kedarnath has been able to build a temporary bridge over a canal between the helipad and the shrine.
While rescue efforts are on in full swing, the narrow tunnel and the massive slush that was brought down by the glacial flood are hampering rescue operations, confirm Swati Bhadauria, the district collector of Chamoli, and Yashwant Singh Chauhan, the superintendent of police.
The next two days are very crucial in terms of rescuing the maximum number of pilgrims and tourists stranded in rain-hit Uttarakhand as heavy showers may come anytime, a senior official said.
Over 200 pilgrims were taken to safety from Badrinath today with the Uttarakhand government saying that only 500 more remained there with adequate food and medical care even as disposal of bodies in affected areas and transportation of relief material posed a fresh challenge.
Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday visited the rescue camp in Guptkashi and talked to locals and officials about the status of relief operations in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand. The locals narrated their woes to Gandhi, who assured them that government will soon take steps to help them.
Rescue agencies are facing tough challenge from local residents of various villages of Uttarakhand as they too are fleeing the affected areas along with stranded tourists and pilgrims.
Over a month after calamity hit Uttarakhand, the state government has finally prepared a roadmap for clearing tonnes of debris left over by the destruction at Kedarnath and extricating bodies still trapped underneath the rubble at the Himalayan shrine and adjoining areas.
The official toll has now crossed the 1000 mark
With weather clearing up, relief operations on Sunday gained momentum in Uttarakhand as the government came out with a roadmap for clearing tonnes of debris and extricating bodies in Kedarnath and adjoining areas ravaged by flash floods over a month ago.
After a brief suspension due to bad weather early in the morning, the rescue operations in rain-hit Uttarakhand resumed on Sunday on a war footing to evacuate 22,000 pilgrims still stranded in high altitude areas amid a MeT department warning of light to moderate rains in the region from Monday.
Hoping against hope, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna on Monday refused to declare as dead the 5,748 persons missing after the June 16 calamity in Uttarakhand, saying the mission to find them will not be given up.
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