Rescuers scour Uttarakhand avalanche site as weather clears up, choppers likely to be roped in
Dehradun (PTI): Rescuers resumed the search for 22 labourers trapped under several feet of snow in the high-altitude Mana village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Saturday morning as the weather cleared up.
Choppers are likely to be roped in for the operation if the weather permits, an official said.
Fifty-five Border Roads Organisation (BRO) labourers were trapped under the avalanche on Friday and 33 of them were rescued. Rain and snowfall hampered the rescue efforts and the operation was suspended as the night fell.
The snowslide, which buried the BRO camp between Mana and Badrinath, rolled down early on Friday morning.
Private and IAF choppers will aid the rescue efforts on Saturday if the weather permits. The nearest airstrip at Gauchar has been readied for the purpose, Chamoli District Disaster Management Officer N K Joshi said.
It is a little cloudy at the moment but once the weather becomes favourable, the helicopters will be pressed into service, he said.
Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel based in Mana have resumed the rescue operation, he added.
A let-up in rain and snowfall can help speed up efforts to trace the 22 labourers who have been trapped under the snow for more than 24 hours now.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is also likely to visit the avalanche site.
According to a list released by the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority, the trapped labourers are from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir, among other states. The list has 10 labourers' names, without mentioning the states they belong to.
Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said on Friday that the task is challenging as there is seven feet of snow near the avalanche site.
More than 65 personnel are engaged in the rescue operations, he said.
Located three kilometres from Badrinath, Mana is the last village on the India-Tibet border at a height of 3,200 metres.
Dehradun, Mar 1 (PTI) Rescuers resumed the search for 22 labourers trapped under several feet of snow in the high-altitude Mana village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Saturday morning as the weather cleared up.
Choppers are likely to be roped in for the operation if the weather permits, an official said.
Fifty-five Border Roads Organisation (BRO) labourers were trapped under the avalanche on Friday and 33 of them were rescued. Rain and snowfall hampered the rescue efforts and the operation was suspended as the night fell.
The snowslide, which buried the BRO camp between Mana and Badrinath, rolled down early on Friday morning.
Private and IAF choppers will aid the rescue efforts on Saturday if the weather permits. The nearest airstrip at Gauchar has been readied for the purpose, Chamoli District Disaster Management Officer N K Joshi said.
It is a little cloudy at the moment but once the weather becomes favourable, the helicopters will be pressed into service, he said.
Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel based in Mana have resumed the rescue operation, he added.
A let-up in rain and snowfall can help speed up efforts to trace the 22 labourers who have been trapped under the snow for more than 24 hours now.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is also likely to visit the avalanche site.
According to a list released by the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority, the trapped labourers are from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir, among other states. The list has 10 labourers' names, without mentioning the states they belong to.
Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said on Friday that the task is challenging as there is seven feet of snow near the avalanche site.
More than 65 personnel are engaged in the rescue operations, he said.
Located three kilometres from Badrinath, Mana is the last village on the India-Tibet border at a height of 3,200 metres.
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11-year-old dies by suicide after sexual assault in Bareilly; accused arrested
Bareilly (UP) (PTI): A 26-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl, who later died by suicide due to trauma, police said on Wednesday.
The post-mortem report confirmed sexual assault and multiple injuries on the minor's body, including bite marks and nail scratches. The cause of death was found to be hanging, they said.
According to ASP (South) Anshika Verma, the incident came to light on 27 April, when the girl, a Class 8 student, was found hanging at her home in Deoria Abdullaganj village under the Mirganj police station area. Initially, the family reported the death as suicide and was reluctant to pursue police action.
"The autopsy report changed the course of the investigation. It confirmed sexual assault and noted severe physical trauma. The cause of death was confirmed as hanging," Verma said.
A breakthrough in the case came from the statement of the victim's younger sister, who told police that the accused, Zeeshan (26), a resident of the same village, frequently loitered near the minor's school and allegedly gave her small sums of money to keep his interactions with her a secret, she said.
Police said that on the day of the incident, the accused allegedly lured the minor and assaulted her. Distressed by the incident, the child later took her own life while her mother was away, police said.
"Based on technical surveillance, CCTV footage, and statements from the family, we established Zeeshan's involvement. He was arrested near the Mirganj weekly market on Tuesday," they said.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the state’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416.)
