Uttarakhand rains: CM Dhami requests Union Minister Gadkari to cooperate in reconstruction of damaged roads

Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], August 3 (ANI): Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has requested Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari’s cooperation in the reconstruction of damaged roads in the state.

Talking to Union Minister Gadkari over the telephone on Saturday, giving information about the roads damaged in the state due to heavy rains, the Chief Minister informed that other national highways, including Char Dham in the state, have suffered heavy damage due to heavy rains in the state.

Requesting the reconstruction of damaged roads, he said that after the rains, the movement of tourists in the state, including Char Dham Yatra, will increase rapidly, for which it is necessary to repair the roads on time.

CM Dhami also requested Nitin Gadkari approve the necessary funds under the Central Road Safety Fund for the repair of roads. He said that road are the only major means of transportation in the hilly areas of the state, hence, timely repair of damaged roads is necessary in the interest of the state.

Uttarakhand Disaster Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said that as many as 3,000 people stranded on the route have been rescued so far but there are still about 1,000 people waiting to be rescued in Kedarnath.

“The weather has become better in the entire state of Uttarakhand. There is no heavy rain and an Orange alert has been issued for tomorrow for Uttarkashi, which means there will be some amount of rain,” he said.

“All the major routes are open; only the route between Kedarnath and Gaurikund is not open. Yesterday, we were successful in bringing 2,300 people from Gaurikund to Sonprayag. 700 people were airlifted. As many as 3,000 people have been rescued so far,” said the Disaster Secretary.

National Disaster Response Force said on Saturday that they have evacuated around 7,000 people from different places.

Sudesh Kumar, NDRF team commander, said, “We have evacuated around 7,000 people from various places. The current situation of Sonprayag is quite normal. The landslide has taken place in 8-9 places and evacuation activities are being carried out by Indian Air Force, Civil Aviation, NDRF and SDRF.”

BJP MP Anil Baluni visited the landslide-affected areas in Rudraprayag and interacted with officials who are part of the rescue and relief operations.