The last batch of 160 pilgrims who got stranded on their way back from Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet was airlifted to safety from the Hilsa and Simikot districts of Nepal. With this all 1430 pilgrims stranded in the mountainous region of Nepal were rescued.
The Indian Embassy in Nepal tweeted earlier today that the evacuation process was complete.
“The evacuation process completed after 160 stranded pilgrims were evacuated today from Simikot and Hilsa. Embassy’s team continues to be stationed to monitor the situation,” the Indian mission tweeted.
“As of today, 1,430 stranded pilgrims were airlifted from Simikot/Hilsa to Nepalgunj/Surkhet and have achieved a zero in both these places,” it said.
Nepalgunj and Surkhet have better healthcare and infrastructure facilities and are located close to the Indian border.
A massive rescue mission was mounted on 2 July after the humanitarian crisis erupted in Nepal due to inclement weather conditions. The Indian mission in the country deployed officials and representatives with medical facilities in all the areas where pilgrims had become stranded to help the elderly and ailing pilgrims.
The rescue mission itself faced problems due to bad weather since 2 July. The condition improved on Tuesday which helped in airlifting 202 pilgrims from Hilsa. At least 277 pilgrims boarded flights from Simikot and landed at Nepalgunj and Surkhet on Wednesday, the Kathmandu Post reported.
On Tuesday, 150 people were evacuated from Simikot and taken to Nepalgunj, while 250 were flown from Hilsa to Simikot.
By 6 July, a total of 1225 stranded pilgrims had been airlifted from Simikot to Nepalgunj and Surkhet.
Tour operators were roped in to help in the operation to airlift around 675 stranded pilgrims at Hilsa to Simikot for onward evacuation to Nepalgunj and Surkhet. The Indian Embassy said that 74 commercial flights were operated and the Embassy additionally pressed in private Mi-16 choppers along with Nepal Army Helicopters that made more than 142 sorties in the difficult terrains of Hilsa-Simikot-Nepalgunj sectors.
A control room with contact numbers of Embassy Officials was set up on 2 July to respond to queries from family members of the stranded pilgrims.
The pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibetan region of China is considered holy by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. Every year, hundreds of Indians undertake the ‘yatra’ which involves trekking under inhospitable conditions. Situated 5,950 metres above the sea level, it takes three days to complete the 52 km Mansarovar circuit.