River rage in Uttarakhand

Despite the fury with which nature hit Uttarakhand, relatives of Maharashtra tourists stranded there are slowly gaining hope. As the situation is being brought under control, people are getting through to worried kin in Mumbai.

Numerous pilgrims and travellers are still waiting for the roads to clear so they can return home. Chaos and frustration is increasing by the day among those  who are stranded there but after that they have seen they are grateful to be alive and safe.

Chhaya Mankar is a Thane resident travelling with Kesari Tours who is now at Hari Om hotel in Uttarkashi. “All the 40 people travelling with us are safe and sound. We were supposed to head back on Sunday but because of all this chaos we have been in this hotel since then,” she said.

Another traveller who had gone on this Char Dham Yatra, with her husband is Meenakshi Virkar who hadn’t been able to get in touch with her daughter because the mobile battery went dead. “It was scary, we saw some seven to eight buildings collapse in front of us. We are safe but the frustration is slowly building up amongst people here,” she said.

Finally, when she got to talk to her daughter in Mumbai, she was relieved that they were safe and being taken care of. “The last time I spoke to my family was on Tuesday, but not for too long due to bad network and electricity problems. I got really worried on Sunday I called up the tour guys after not being able to contact my parents. They are safe now and I’ve been assured that the hotel has generators. They will head home after the roads are cleared,” says Dhanashree Virkar.

The State Disaster Control Room helpline 022-22027990/ 22816625/ 22854168

Pradeep Kumar  9868140663     Jagdish Chandra 9818187793