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A large number of pilgrims were swept by the flash floods and many homes were damaged.
A day after a cloudburst struck the Mata Machail yatra route in Kishtwar, the toll has risen to 65 and could climb higher.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has left for Kishtwar and will travel on Saturday morning to Chishoti, the village struck by the cloudburst.
While the Air Force is on standby for relief and rescue operations, the cloudy weather is becoming a hindrance in air operations.
Speaking to reporters, J&K’s Minister for Agricultural Production and Rural Development, Haved Ahmad Dar, confirmed that 65 bodies have been recovered but added that many are still missing.
“There is no definite number of the missing people so far, but the number of deaths is going up,” an official told The Indian Express. “One of the witnesses said that there were around 200 people near the langar when it was swept away.”
They said that the biggest challenge right now is to trace the bodies, as some have been buried under the mounds of debris. “Some bodies have been swept away many kilometres down the stream,” he said. “It will take many days to retrieve all the bodies”.
“I’ll be leaving for Kishtwar later this afternoon and will be going to the scene of the cloudburst tragedy early tomorrow morning to see, first hand, the extent of damage. I will review the rescue operation & assess what further help is required,” the Chief Minister’s office posted on X.
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Officials said that the inclement weather and rough terrain have been posing difficulties in relief and rescue operations. The Indian Air Force, which is waiting for things to improve, has kept choppers on standby at its Udhampur base.
The massive cloudburst struck the Chishoti village of Padder in Kishtwar on Thursday, at a time when pilgrims were on the annual Shri Mata Machail yatra. A large number of pilgrims were swept by the flash floods and many homes were damaged.
Bashaarat Masood is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express. He has been covering Jammu and Kashmir, especially the conflict-ridden Kashmir valley, for two decades. Bashaarat joined The Indian Express after completing his Masters in Mass Communication and Journalism from the University in Kashmir. He has been writing on politics, conflict and development. Bashaarat was awarded with the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards in 2012 for his stories on the Pathribal fake encounter. ... Read More
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