All the trapped trainees are from the Nehru Mountaineering Institute of Uttarkashi
Twenty-nine trainee mountaineers were trapped after an avalanche hit Draupadi’s Danda-2 mountain peak in Uttarakhand. While eight of them have been rescued, efforts are on to bring the others to safety.
All the trainees are from the Nehru Mountaineering Institute of Uttarkashi. Uttarakhand police chief Ashok Kumar said helicopters of the Indian Air Force have been pressed into action to rescue the trapped trainees.
According to information received so far, the team was caught in the avalanche around 9 am today at an altitude of 16,000 feet. The official said the trainees are being flown to a nearby helipad at a height of 13,000 feet, and then to Dehradun.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami’s office said teams of the National Disaster Response Force, the state disaster response force and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police are part of the rescue operation.
“Rapid relief and rescue operations are being carried out by the district administration, NDRF, SDRF, Army and ITBP personnel along with the team of NIM to rescue the trainees trapped in the avalanche in Draupadi’s Danda-2 mountain peak at the earliest,” the Chief Minister’s Office tweeted.
The Chief Minister’s Office added that he had spoken to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and sought the Army’s help. “The centre has assured every help,” it said.
