Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy on Monday telephoned his Uttarakhand counterpart Vijay Bahaguna seeking assistance to shift the large number of stranded pilgrims from AP to safer places.
Nearly 1,000 pilgrims from Andhra Pradesh are said to be struck in various places of Uttarakhand as part of their pilgrimage, Char Dham yatra.
Chief Secretary P.K. Mohanty also contacted the Uttarakhand Chief Secretary and urged him to take steps to help the pilgrims.
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A senior official in the Chief Minister's office told The Hindu on Monday that Mr. Kiran Reddy discussed with Mr. Bahaguna the need to provide food and water to the pilgrims stranded in their vehicles.
"Our information shows that their pilgrims fall in two categories. There are those on their way back to Dehra Dun but have managed to camp in some nearby town. The rest are those stuck on the roads in mountainous terrain," the official said.
With no respite in rains and the sudden cloud burst on the intervening night of Sunday- Monday, rescue and relief operations have become a herculean task. The CMO official said the approach road to Dehradun has also been blocked due to landslips.
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"There is no way the pilgrims can not be brought back till the roads are cleared," the official said. Aerial operations can not be taken up due to the inclement weather.
It may be mentioned here that a large number of pilgrims from Nalgonda, East and West Godavari and Krishna districts had been on Char Dham yatra in the last few days.