Anindya Sundar Pal, 07-02-2021
Chamoli, Uttarakhand: Seven people were killed and 170 are still
missing, after a glacier break at Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district
triggered massive flooding of the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers on Sunday.
Many villages were evacuated as floods swept away five bridges, damaged homes
and the nearby NTPC power plant, and washed away a small hydro power project
near Rishiganga. Six people were injured. National and state disaster response
teams have been deployed, as have teams from the ITBP. The Army has sent six columns
and the Navy seven diving teams. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted:
"India stands with Uttarakhand and the nation prays for everyone's safety."
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top 10 points in this big story:
170 people -
148 employed at the NTPC plant and 22 at Rishiganga - are still missing. Twelve
people trapped in an under-construction tunnel have been rescued by an ITBP
team. Around thirty others are trapped in a second tunnel, reportedly around
2.5 km long, and the ITBP will work through the night to save them, spokesperson
Vivek Pandey, said.
Uttarakhand
Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said seven bodies had been found at a
construction site. Mr Rawat who visited Chamoli district earlier in the day,
said rescue teams were "doing their best to save the lives of the workers".
He also said a team of scientific experts would work to establish the exact
cause of the disaster at a later stage.
Mr Rawat
also announced ₹ 4 lakh compensation for the family of those killed. An extra ₹
2 lakh will be given from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund, with ₹
50,000 for those with serious injuries.
Prime
Minister Modi tweeted to say he had spoken to Mr Rawat, and said: "Am
constantly monitoring the unfortunate situation... India stands with
Uttarakhand and the nation prays for everyone's safety there." Home
Minister Amit Shah also tweeted; he said the Modi government stood
shoulder-to-shoulder with the people of Uttarakhand.
The NCMC
(National Crisis Management Committee) met late Sunday evening and said
information from the Central Water Commission (CWC) indicated there was no
danger of downstream flooding at this point, and that the rise in water levels
had been contained. There is also no threat to the neighbouring villages, the
NCMC said after it met.
Medical
teams have been rushed to affected sites. A 30-bed hospital was readied at
Joshimath and hospitals in Srinagar, Rishikesh, Jollygrant and Dehradun are on
standby.
Five NDRF
teams were mobilised at first. By Sunday evening three more were deployed, with
five tonnes of relief equipment, from Ghaziabad's Hindon Air Force base. Teams
are also being airlifted from Dehradun to Joshimath. Two ITBP teams and several
SDRF teams have also been mobilised. The Army has sent six columns, each with
100 soldiers, as well as medical teams and an engineering task force with
earth-moving equipment. Seven Navy diving teams have also been deployed.
Videos and
images showed the massive burst of water tearing through a narrow valley below
the power plant, leaving roads and bridges destroyed in its wake. Authorities
emptied two dams in a bid to stop the flood waters from reaching Rishikesh and
Haridwar, where people were barred from going near the Ganga riverbanks.
Massive
flash floods and landslides hit Uttarakhand's Kedarnath in June 2013 after a multi-day
cloudburst. Over 5,700 people were killed in one of the country's worst natural
disasters since the 2004 tsunami. The floods also damaged parts of the famous
Kedarnath temple, which is located 3,581 metres above sea level.
Melting of
Himalayan glaciers has doubled since the start of the 21st century due to
rising temperatures, a study published in 2019 said. Scientists analysed 40
years of satellite observations across India, China, Nepal and Bhutan, which
indicates climate change is eating Himalayan glaciers. This potentially
threatens water supply for hundreds of millions of people in these countries,
including India.
