Yogesh
Srinagar, Aug 15: On Thursday at approximately 11:15 AM, a sudden cloudburst struck Chositi village, the base camp for pilgrims undertaking the Mata Machail Yatra in Kishtwar district. Sunil Sharma, the local MLA and Leader of Opposition in the J&K Assembly, was in Kishtwar town at the time of the disaster.
Upon hearing about the incident, Sharma rushed to Chositi village in Padder and personally took charge of the rescue operation. He has been camping at the site of the tragedy for the past 30 hours, leading efforts to retrieve bodies and rescue the injured.
“After reaching here, he arranged ambulances to shift the deceased to the Sub-District Hospital Padder and the injured to District Hospital Kishtwar and Government Medical College Jammu,” locals said.
“Given the magnitude of the disaster, there was a shortage of ambulances. Sharma arranged sumos and tempos to ferry the injured to hospitals,” they added.
In several videos that have gone viral on social media, Sharma is seen actively mobilizing local residents to assist in rescuing stranded Yatris. He can also be seen personally carrying bodies and evacuating pilgrims from the affected area.
Besides, Sharma opened a helpline for affected families and for the identification of the deceased. “The relatives of missing persons can send photographs to us so that we can match them with the bodies,” Sharma is seen appealing in one of the videos.
