NDRF teams start rescue ops in flood-hit Punjab

 

 

 

SEVERAL teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) on Wednesday began rescue operations to evacuate people in several areas here which were inundated following the release of excess water from the Pong dam, officials said on Wednesday. The Pong dam, on the Beas river, is brimming after heavy rain in its catchment areas. The water level in the Beas river rose following the release of water from the Pong dam on Tuesday, said Gurdaspur Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal.

 

He added that a breach in the embankment along the Beas river has flooded many villages, including Chechia Chorian, Pakhowal, Kherha, Dalelpur, Padana, Chhina Bet, Nadala, Jagatpur Kalan, Kohlian and Khariaan. 960 rescued, over 10K taken to safer locations in rain-hit HP, Uttarakhand, Punjab: NDRF: MORE than 960 people have been rescued while over 10,000 have been shifted to safer places in regions of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab battered by heavy rains and flash floods, the NDRF said on Wednesday. A total of 29 teams of the federal contingency force have been earmarked for undertaking relief and rescue operations in these states out of which 14 are actively deployed while the rest are on standby.

 

Uttarakhand rains: Chopper pressed into service to rescue stranded pilgrims en route to Madmaheshwar: AROUND 70 pilgrims stranded on the trek route to Madmaheshwar temple in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district were safely evacuated on Wednesday with the help of a helicopter and SDRF personnel, while efforts were underway to rescue over 80 devotees still stuck at the spot, officials said. More than 200 pilgrims got stranded on the route on Monday when a bridge at Bantoli in Gaundar village broke down following heavy rains.While 52 of them were rescued with the help of ropes by SDRF personnel by Tuesday evening, 70 more were rescued on Wednesday morning in a helicopter, he said. Himachal: Three generations of family killed in Shimla temple collapse: A FAMILY lost members spanning three generations in the mishap in which a temple in the Summer Hill area of rain-battered Shimla district was washed away following a landslide triggered by Monday’s cloudburst. According to officials, seven members of the family, including three children were inside the Shiv temple when it collapsed. The deceased were identified as Pawan Sharma, his wife Santosh, son Aman, daughter-in-law Archna and three granddaughters.