Kishtwar Cloudburst: Week on, no trace of missing people

Jammu, Aug 3: Over a week after 19 persons including eight women went missing following a cloudburst at Honzar Dachan in Kishtwar district, there has been no trace of them as rescuers returned empted handed again to their camps in the remote village on Tuesday.
Official sources said that rescuers called off the operation for the day this evening as there was no trace of those missing following the cloudburst and subsequent flash floods in the remote village on intervening night of July 27 and 28.
On Monday Director General of Police Dilbag Singh had an aerial survey of the village. He also chaired a high-level meeting during which, among others, he stressed the need for intensifying the rescue operation to trace the missing persons.
Authorities have pressed teams of NDRF and SDRF for carrying out the rescue operation. Several teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) with “sophisticated equipment” were earlier involved in the operation along with other rescuers from police, Army and local volunteers, the officials said.
Success has been eluding the search teams after seven bodies were recovered and seventeen persons rescued in injured condition after the calamity on Wednesday last.
The missing persons include Saja Begum (60) wife of Ghulam Mohidin, Khursheed Ahmed (31) son of Mohammad Iqbal, Fida Hussain (26) son of Mohammad Ramzan, Mohammad Sharif (40) son of Ghulam Rasool, Almina Tasbassum (22) daughter of Mohammad Iqbal, Mata Begum (45) wife of Lala Tantry, Ghulam Mohammad (70) son of Ghulam Rasool, Fazal Hussain (18) son of Rustom Ali Chopan, Tariq Hussain (50) son of Nazir Ahmed, Zarina Begum (40) wife of Tariq Hussain, Mata Begum (45) wife of Ghulam Rasool, Fatima Begum (56) wife of Ghulam Ahmed, Bashir Ahmed (45) son of Rustum Ali, Begum (45) wife of Abdul Rehman, Sharifa Begum (38) wife of Ghulam Mohammad, Shakir Hussain (22) son of Ghulam Ahmed, Ghulam Ahmed (65) son of Abdul Aziz, Zubaida Banoo (25) daughter of Ghulam Ahmed and Khalid son of Haji Gami.
The police have also started a community kitchen since weakened to provide meals to affected people of village Hounzar. The police said to have erected tents to provide the temporary shelter at the site. (GNS)