Pilgrims stranded at Badrinath will have to wait for one more day to be moved to safety from the hilly terrain, with incessant rains lashing several places and landslides blocking entry points.
Meanwhile, the State government intensified efforts to bring back 170 pilgrims from Badrinath to New Delhi. A special team, led by Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Andhra Pradesh Bhavan, and Lt. Col. Maddineni Ashok Babu, was rushed to Hardwar to oversee rescue operations.
“I spoke to Border Roads Organisation (BRO) officials who said the 150 metre-long main stretch connecting Govind Ghat with Hardwar and Badrinath was badly damaged by landslides. We are hopeful of commencing rescue operations from Sunday, as road repair works are on,” Mr. Babu said over phone from Hardwar. Of the 170 pilgrims, 140 are from Hindupur and Madakasira, 22 from Bhimavaram and eight from Kadapa. There are reports that some of them were stranded at Joshimath, but the local administration is yet to confirm it.
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