Kathmandu/New Delhi, Aug 29 (NVI) At least 287 Indians are among 2,400 people who remain missing after the devastating floods in Nepal which has claimed over 600 human lives, according to the latest official update.
Nearly 2,500 people, including 163 foreigners, have been evacuated as rescue teams raced against time amid intermittent rainfall in the flood-affected regions of Nepal.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs said this evening that four Indians were rescued from the Rasuwa hydropower project, while 287 Indians are still missing.
Meanwhile, an 11-member Indian team, comprising medical personnel and tunnel-rescue specialists, arrived in Nepal today to provide specialised technical assistance to ongoing effort to rescue workers trapped or unaccounted for inside hydropower project tunnels following devastating flash floods.
The team, sent at the request of the Nepal government, reached the Trishuli area after conducting an aerial reconnaissance of the Chilime and Langtang areas and began assessing the situation for rescue operations, according to Nepalese authorities.
Outside hospitals, families could be seen lining up to check lists of injured people admitted for treatment, carefully going through names and photographs in the hope of finding someone they know.
When they fail to find their loved ones among the survivors, many turn to another list — photographs of the dead — with heavy hearts.
Rescuers, meanwhile, are working round the clock, braving rain in some places and digging through drying mud in others in their search for those still missing.
In Trishuli, an Army relief camp has emerged as a major support centre for people affected by the disaster.
Army personnel were seen helping elderly people and children, while makeshift medical facilities treated the injured.
The camps were also providing information on those missing, dead and rescued.
More than 11,000 security personnel, including over 5,000 Nepal Army personnel, have been mobilised for search and rescue operations.
With the country’s meteorology department indicating the possibility of moderate rainfall, the task facing rescuers is expected to become even more difficult.
Yet, for a country that has faced similar disasters before, the focus remains on searching for the missing, helping the survivors and beginning the long task of rebuilding. (NVI)
