On a day bad weather caused repeated interruptions, the team entrusted with the Herculean task of cleaning up the debris in Kedarnath worked in parts and managed to pull out a decomposed body from within the heap, besides constructing a temporary bridge in the area.
“The team at Kedarnath has not been able to do much since morning as the weather was very bad today, but one body has been recovered (from under the debris),” Uttarakhand DGP Satyavrat Bansal said.
This is the first body to have been extricated from the debris in Kedarnath, as those cremated so far were the ones that were found lying on the ground.
The 61-member team, that fought inclement weather throughout the day, also built a temporary bridge over a canal between the helipad near Kedarnath and the shrine. “The clearing of debris had begun but went very slow due to bad weather. We can speed up only if the weather improves,” Mr Bansal said, adding that weather will play a crucial role in the mammoth exercise.
The team, that comprises PWD and police personnel, was sent after a group of experts had withdrawn citing health reasons and fatigue.
So far, 170 bodies found in Kedarghati and other places, including Hardwar, have been cremated with necessary rituals.
Bad weather has also prevented temple committee’s 15-member team, which is supposed to take part in the clean-up work, to reach the Kedarnath area. This may also delay the beginning of formal puja in the revered shrine, as it will take place after cleaning and sanctification of the premises.
Meanwhile despite bad weather, attempts are on to transport relief to calamity-hit areas in Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts, officials said.
Whenever the weather gets cleared up, relief material is dispatched to the affected villages, they said here.
An official statement here said 983 quintal of foodgrain, besides 288 LPG cylinders, have been made available to affected people in the villages of Rudraprayag district.
Authorities have also managed to supply 35 quintal of foodgrain and 230 litres of kerosene and diesel to the flood hit village in the district. Similarly, 6,120 quintal of foodgrain have also been dispatched to 146 villages of Uttarkashi district.
However, while the blockade on the roads caused by the piling of debris is making transportation difficult, low visibility is affecting the air relief operations.