Seven people, including two bikers from Hyderabad, have died in rain-related incidents, and over 50 roads are blocked due to landslides and rockfalls in different parts of Uttarakhand since Friday morning. The state government has indefinitely suspended trekking on the Gaumukh-Tapovan track due to damage caused by heavy rains.
According to information shared by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), two bikers from Hyderabad died on Saturday after being buried under a boulder at Chatwapipal near Karnprayag in Chamoli. The deceased bikers, identified as 36-year-old Nirmal Shahi and 50-year-old Satyanarayan, were returning from Badrinath towards Rishikesh when they were struck by a large boulder rolling down from the mountain above. In another incident, a 52-year-old woman died at Banbasa in Chmpawat district after falling into a swollen river caused by heavy rainfall.
Two persons were swept away in the Bhagirathi River near Chidwasa on the Gaumukh pedestrian track after the bridge over the river collapsed. As many as 38 persons, including 25 Kanwad devotees and five women, along with eight trekkers returning from Gaumukh, the origin place of the Ganga River, were stranded on the other side of the river. They were all safely rescued by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF). Meanwhile, search operations are continuing for two others who are still missing. In another incident, two persons died when the vehicle they were travelling in fell into a gorge near Tilwara in Rudraprayag.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government has indefinitely suspended trekking on the Gaumukh-Tapovan designated track due to severe damage caused by heavy rains over the past 4-5 days.
Nearly 60 roads across the state, including the Badrinath-Gangotri highway and the Kedarnath route between Gaurikund and Rudraprayag, remained blocked due to landslides. A tunnel was badly damaged due to the landslides. The local administration has stopped traffic movements as efforts are underway to clear the debris.