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Bhubaneswar, April 30: As many as 300 Oriyas are among pilgrims stranded between Joshimath and Govindghat along the Rishikesh-Badrinath National Highway in Uttarakhand during their pilgrimage to Badrinath.
Around 350 Oriyas pilgrims had been stranded of which around 50 have been rescued so far, according to sources.
The stranded persons are reported to be from Bargarh, Bhadrak, Bolangir and Mayurbhanj districts. Of these, 54 people from Bhadrak, the district collector, LN Mishra, most of whom have been rescued.
The pilgrims have been trapped since April 28 because of a landslide followed by heavy rain at Vishnuprayag in Uttarakhand, sources said. Communication between Joshimath and Govindghat was completely disrupted after the landslide Tuesday, sources said.
“The state government is taking all steps to rescue the stranded in Uttarakhand. The resident commissioner of state government is in direct touch with the Uttarakhand government from New Delhi and is also making arrangements to ensure the safe return of the people,” special relief commissioner GVV Sharma said here.
Union minister of petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan said the Uttarakhand government has already launched a rescue operation. “The government is making arrangements for food and treatment of the stranded people,” he said.
One of the pilgrims, Narendra Kumar Samal, said that they have been trapped for hours and were waiting for the rescue team to arrive. “We have taken shelter at a height of 5,000 metres in the mountain at Govindmath. The resident commissioner and the Dehradun collector have asked us to wait at the helipad from where we would be taken to Joshimath” Samal said.