Two more bodies recovered in cloudburst-hit J-K’s Kishtwar, death toll rises to 63

Chisoti (JK), Aug 18 (PTI) Two more bodies were recovered from the debris in this cloudburst-hit village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, taking the death toll in the natural calamity to 63, officials said, as a large-scale search continued for the fifth day on Monday despite intermittent rains.

Donning rain coats, the rescue teams were working at multiple locations, especially the major impact spot near a langar (community kitchen) site, sifting through the rubble using machinery, including earth movers, and sniffer dogs.

Two bodies, one of them of a woman, were recovered this afternoon, the officials said.

The woman's body was found downstream in a gorge near Kukundra village, while the other body was found buried near a temple.

With the recovery of the two bodies, the death toll in the flash floods triggered by the cloudburst on August 14 in Chisoti, the last motorable village en route to the Machail Mata temple, has risen to 63. The dead included three CISF personnel and one Special Police Officer.

A total of 167 persons were rescued, while the number of missing has dropped to 39 after a fresh revision of the list this morning, the officials said.

Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps, in a post on X, said five relief columns of the force are engaged in the rescue and relief operations and efforts have been further intensified with additional medical teams deployed.

“Despite adverse terrain and weather, a bridge over Chisoti Nala was completed on August 17, expediting relief and evacuation. Additional equipment is being moved forward to strengthen operations and senior Army functionaries are on ground to oversee relief and rescue,” the army said, adding close coordination with civil agencies continues to expedite relief efforts.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha on Monday announced that 10 senior IAS and IPS officers -- two for each day -- will be posted at Chisoti for the next eight days.

"In order to supervise relief and rescue operations in response to the recent tragic cloudburst, the officers, as per the roster, are hereby deputed to Chisoti in district Kishtwar," read an order issued by Commissioner-Secretary to the Government M Raju.

The officers will be deployed in the hamlet for the next eight days, with one IAS and one IPS officer overseeing operations for two days each.

The flash-floods triggered by the cloudburst left a trail of destruction, flattening a makeshift market, a langar site for the annual Machail Mata yatra, damaging 16 houses and government buildings, three temples, four water mills and a 30-metre-long bridge, besides over a dozen vehicles.

“Today is the fifth day of the operation, and combined efforts are underway to recover the mortal remains of the missing persons. The weather is challenging in view of the rain. We also have a warning (of heavy rains) for the day, but still we are trying our best,” a CISF officer said.

The joint teams of police, army, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), CISF, Border Roads Organisation (BRO), civil administration, and local volunteers are engaged in the rescue efforts.

Army engineers on Sunday built a Bailey bridge over Chisoti nullah, providing much-needed connectivity to the village and the Machail Mata shrine. The Army has also inducted a couple of all-terrain vehicles as part of the efforts to intensify the rescue and relief operation, officials said.

The rescuers conducted half a dozen controlled explosions over the last two days to blow up giant boulders hampering the search.

The annual Machail Mata yatra, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to conclude on September 5, remained suspended for the fifth consecutive day on Sunday. However, authorities have decided to allow a group of devotees carrying ‘Charri’ from Jammu.

The 8.5-km trek to the 9,500-foot-high shrine starts from Chisoti, located about 90 km from Kishtwar town.

The rescuers are utilising over a dozen earth-movers and other heavy equipment, while the NDRF mobilised its resources, including dog squads, to speed up the rescue operation. PTI TAS RT