by Peerzada Arshad Hamid
NEW DELHI, Aug 15 (NNN-XINHUA) – At least 46 people were killed and over 100 others injured yesterday, after a massive cloudburst hit Indian-controlled Kashmir, officials said.
The cloudburst hit Chositi village of Kishtwar district, about 290 km south-east of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.
According to officials, the massive cloudburst caused a flash flood, leading to widespread damage in the village. The flash flood washed away several structures, including a community kitchen, shops and a security outpost, besides several vehicles parked at the spot.
“In today’s (yesterday’s) tragedy that struck at a village in Kishtwar here, 46 people are reported to have died, and over 100 others injured,” an official said. “The rescuers who reached the spot managed to pull at least 200 people to safety from mounds of rubble.”
“There are fears that the death toll may go up, given the reports of many people being reported missing,” the official said.
Chositi is the last village in the Kishtwar district and a stopover point on a pilgrimage route, leading to a Hindu temple perched at an altitude of 3,000 metres in the mountains.
According to officials, a large number of people, mostly pilgrims, had gathered at the village around a makeshift community kitchen for the trek up to the shrine.
Immediately after the tragedy, police, the Indian army and local volunteers launched a large-scale rescue operation. Authorities also rushed the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams to the spot, to aid the rescue efforts.
“A large-scale rescue operation is underway in the area to find out people, remove the injured to hospitals and trace the missing,” Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar Pankaj Sharma said.
In the wake of massive destruction, authorities have suspended the pilgrimage.
Photos circulating on social media show the injured people, bodies lying in the rubble, and some covered in white shrouds on stretchers, besides the extensive damage caused in the village.
Videos showed torrents of muddy water, silt and rubble tearing through the steep slopes, destroying everything in the way.
Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has also expressed deep concern over the cloudburst and subsequent flooding in Kishtwar.
“The situation is being monitored closely. Rescue and relief operations are underway. Every possible assistance will be provided to those in need,” Modi said in a statement.
The India Meteorological Department on Wednesday predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places over Indian-controlled Kashmir, and local authorities had issued alerts for landslides and cloudbursts in the region.
Indian-controlled Kashmir has a rugged terrain. Landslides are often triggered from its mountains during frequent rains.– NNN-XINHUA
