Uttarakhand glacier tradgedy: 62 dead, over 140 missing; search operation intensifies

At least 62 people have died and over 140 others are missing in the Uttarakhand glacier tragedy, officials said on Friday. The search and rescue operation is continuing at the NTPC's Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project site for the 13th consecutive day following flash floods due to a glacial burst in Chamoli district on February 7.

The multi-agency rescue effort in Chamoli district is focusing on the Tapovan tunnel where about 30 workers were feared trapped. The agencies involved in the Tapovan rescue work include the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, the National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force.

Apart from scouring inside the tunnel and near the barrage of the NTPC's Tapovan-Vishnugad project site, the NDRF rescue teams are also searching along the banks of the Alaknanda river and near a temple in Raini where villagers suspect some people to be trapped, NDRF Commandant PK Tiwari had said.