Uttarakhand What is Known about the Glacier Accident so Far

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Rescue work is on and efforts are being made to evacuate the workers trapped in the tunnels after the flash floods in the Rishiganga Valley due to the glacier bursting in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.

According to officials, 7 bodies have been recovered so far while 170 people are missing.

ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey told news agency ANI, “We have stepped up the search operation for the second tunnel, there are reported about 30 people trapped. 300 ITBP jawans are busy clearing the tunnel so that people Can be evacuated. According to the local administration, 170 people are missing in this disaster. ”

The spokesman said that due to a lot of debris around the tunnels, rescue operations could be started only with the help of machines. He hoped that people could be evacuated safely from inside the tunnel.

Teams of ITBP, NDRF, and SDRAF are engaged in rescue work.

In this tragedy, the Tapovan hydro-electric power dam, also known as the Rishiganga Project, has been completely destroyed.

How did the Glacier accident happen?

Around ten o’clock on Sunday morning, water suddenly rose in some rivers in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.

In fact, landslides occurred due to the breaking of a part of the Nanda Devi glacier, and the water level in the Dhauli Ganga, Rishi Ganga, and Alaknanda rivers rose, causing panic.

This damaged the two hydropower projects of NTPC – the Tapovan-Vishnugarh project and the Rishi Ganga project there.

The tunnels attached to these projects were flooded and workers were trapped there.

Many houses coming in the way of water were also washed away. There is a possibility of damage even in the low lying areas.

The administration immediately evacuated many villages and people were taken to safer areas.

Due to the rising water level, rescue work had to be stopped for some time last night.

हमने दूसरी टनल के लिए सर्च ऑपरेशन तेज़ कर दिया है, वहां क़रीब 30 लोगों के फंसे होने की सूचना है। आईटीबीपी के 300 जवान टनल को क्लियर करने में लगे हैं जिससे लोगों को निकाला जा सके। स्थानीय प्रशासन के मुताबिक 170 लोग इस आपदा में लापता हैं: विवेक कुमार पांडे, आईटीबीपी के प्रवक्ता pic.twitter.com/mUSOpC7aWc

— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) February 8, 2021

Home Minister Amit Shah has said that “In this difficult time, the Modi government stands shoulder to shoulder with the people of Uttarakhand.” Teams of NDRF, ITBP, and SDRAF have reached there. The Air Force has also been put on alert.

Every life matters, every hand helps!

We carries out rescue operations in #Chamoli, Uttarakhand

@Ashokkumarips pic.twitter.com/Dpzbm5EsJX

— Uttarakhand Police (@uttarakhandcops) February 7, 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a grant of Rs 2 lakh to his family members who died in the accident. In Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has also announced a relief amount of Rs 4-4 lakh to the families of the deceased.

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