By Santushti Raina
Dehradun: Many are feared swept in flash flood in Alaknanda and Dhauli Ganga rivers following the Nanda Devi glacier burst at Joshimath in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district today morning at around 10.45 am, affecting two dam sites in Chamoli.
Uttarakhand’s Chief Secretary Om Prakash put the figure of those missing between 100-150. More than 150 labourers working at the RishiGanga power project might have been directly affected, State Disaster Response Force DIG Ridhim Aggarwal, said.
Sixteen people who had been trapped in an underground tunnel at the Tapovan dam have been rescued and were being shifted to a safer place, Uttarakhand Director General of Police Ashok Kumar said.
The Chamoli police said several casualties were feared near Raini village which is 26 kilometers from the Joshimath area, and advised people living on the banks of river Alaknanda to move to a safe place at the earliest. Rescue operations were also on in the Tapovan area, the site of RishiGanga power project, which is believed to be damaged along with the NTPC power project in the region. The Chamoli district magistrate has instructed officials to evacuate people living in villages on the bank of the Dhauliganga river.
President Ram Nath Kovind tweeted: “Deeply worried about the glacier burst near Joshimath, Uttarakhand, that caused destruction in the region. Praying for well being and safety of people. Am confident that rescue and relief operations on ground are progressing well.
Read the latest update here: Uttarakhand Glacier Burst: No danger of downstream flooding
State Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat who had cancelled all his programmes and rushed to the affected area for first hand assessment of situation, tweeted: “Chamoli district administration is being helped at all levels of the government. There is no cause for panic as of now & I appeal everyone to not believe rumours,” he tweeted.
Rawat said there was also a possibility of damage to the RishiGanga power project in Raini village of Chamoli due to heavy rains and sudden water. He also said that there was also a possibility of flooding in the lower areas of Alaknanda due to sudden arrival in the river. “People have been alerted in coastal areas. People settled along the river are being removed from the area,” he tweeted, while cautioning people against spreading rumours from “old videos about the incident”. Due to massive flooding in the Dhauli Ganga river because of the glacier burst, the Joshimath-Malari bridge has also been washed away. This bridge was used by Indian Army personnel to go to the border areas.
Considering the extent of damage and to contain further deterioration, Indian Army has been pressed into rescue and relief operations. Army has deployed choppers and troops for supporting Uttarakhand government and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to tackle the flood. Military station near Rishikesh is actively involved in coordination of rescue and relief operations with local administration, and the army headquarters is monitoring the situation. The Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) too is in touch with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and has despatched a large team from the Regional Response Center of ITBP, Gauchar. A mountaineering team of the ITBP was also immediately dispatched with the personnels specialising in building bridges. 200 personnel have already been sent by ITBP from Joshimath to the affected areas.
State CM Rawat in series of tweets around 3 pm today said flow from Tehri dam was stopped to facilitate smooth passage of rising waters on RishiGanga and Alaknanda. He said all the villages and low lying areas on the banks were vacated and water flow from Srinagar dam was increased to manage higher water flows due to disaster at Uttarakhand. “State Chief Secretary, disaster management department and my own team is at the control centre and monitoring the situation on real time basis and they have been instructed to take all appropriate actions necessary to deal with the emerging situation in #Uttarakhand,” he tweeted. He further informed that currently no additional water flows were being reported and there was no flood situation anywhere. “Water from the affected site has reached beyond Nandprayag and river was flowing 1 meter above normal levels. No loss has been reported from villages along Alaknanda,” he said.
लोगों से अपील है कि बेचैन न हों। हमारी टीमें मदद में लगी हुई हैं। राहत बचाव कार्य तेज़ी से किया जा रहा है। अपनो और अपनो का ध्यान रखें, ख़ुद को सुरक्षित स्थान पर तुरंत ले जाएँ। हमारी राहत बचाव टीम की मदद करें।
@Ashokkumarips pic.twitter.com/mTAhGWCwQV— PIB in Uttarakhand (@PIBDehradun) February 7, 2021
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted that the NDRF teams had reached the affected spots, he said more teams were ready to be airlifted to Uttarakhand from Delhi. “ITBP jawans are also there. I assure the people of Uttarakhand that the Modi government stands with them in this difficult time. All help will be extended,” Shah said.Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai, informed that two teams of ITBP had reached the spot, and three NDRF teams had also been rushed from Dehradun. He said three additional teams will reach there with help of the India Air Force chopper by evening. State Disaster Response Force and local administration were already at the spot, he said.
In New Delhi, Cabinet Secretary had been chairing a virtual meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee on the glacier burst in Joshimath to review the relief and rehabilitation work.
The state government has provided the Disaster Operations Centre’s numbers, 1070 or 9557444486, for those who either got stuck in the affected area, or needed any kind of help.
“As a precaution, the flow of Bhagirathi river has been stopped. To prevent the flow of water of Alaknanda, Srinagar Dam, and Rishikesh Dam have been evacuated. SDRF is on alert. I request you not to spread rumours. Pay attention to official authentic information only. I am leaving for the scene myself,” CM Rawat said.
Meanwhile, Srinagar, Haridwar, and Rishikesh cities of Uttarakhand have been put on alert as well. The Srinagar dam has been evacuated.
दुखदाई, हिमालय से छेड़छाड़ का परिणाम। अंधा नासमझी से किया गया विकास ऐसे ही घटनाओं को जन्म देता है। सड़कें चौड़ी करने के लिए पेड़ कटाई, विस्फोट करने से पहाड़ का सीना फटता है। सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता, पर्यावरणविदों ने पहले ही चेताया था।
इस दुःख में हम हिमालय के नागरिकों के साथ है।
रमेश चंद शर्मा, बा बापू 150, गांधी युवा बिरादरी