Dehradun, July 15: The deadline for locating 5,748 people still missing in the Uttarakhand disaster ended on Monday, exactly a month after the catastrophe, but Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna said they will not be declared dead yet.
Mr. Bahuguna, however, said the process of paying monetary relief of Rs. 5 lakh each to the kin of those dead and missing in the flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains that struck the hill state on June 15 will commence from Tuesday. He also said the mission to trace the missing will continue.
But if the missing persons are found, the family will have to return the relief money, he said at a joint news conference with Union Minister of State for Planning and Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla.
When asked whether the missing are being presumed dead, Mr. Bahuguna said, “This is hoping against hope but we can't declare them dead.”
Setting a deadline, the Chief Minister had said last week that those who are still missing will be presumed dead if they remain untraced till July 15.
Out of Rs. 5 lakh to be given to the next of kin of the missing, Rs. 3.5 lakh will be paid by the Centre and the rest by the respective state governments.
“After tabulation of lists of missing persons received from other states and the ones available with us a total of 5,748 persons are missing till date out of which 934 are from Uttarakhand,” he said.
“The mission to find them out will go on as we still hope that the missing surface and return to their homes.”
A fortnight back, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the death toll could be around 900.
Admitting that debris removal at Kedarnath shrine was being badly affected by inclement weather, the chief minister said the NDRF has not been able to drop equipment needed to clear nearly five feet of debris lying in the shrine premises due to incessant rains.
Bodies have also been sighted in Rambada area a few kilometres from the shrine but the team engaged in the exercise has not been able to reach them.
Relief material is being transported by mules and choppers to affected areas whenever the weather permits.
Mr. Bahuguna also said BSNL lines have been restored in all affected villages.
About the formation of a glacial lake at Satopanth beyond Badrinath, the chief minister said the report submitted by a team of experts that visited the area says there is no threat perception as there is no stagnation of water in the lake.
Mr. Bahuguna said a long term plan for infrastructural reconstruction of the ‘char dhams' is being prepared in consultation with the GSI and environmental experts which will soon be submitted to the Centre.
Special attention will be paid to the seismic vulnerability of the hill regions of the state and flood control measures in view of erosion of the Ganga river and its tributaries in the plan for rehabilitation and reconstruction of the affected areas in Uttarakhand, he said.
Noting that taking relief to flood-hit people and their subsequent rehabilitation are on top of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's agenda, Mr. Shukla said a Cabinet sub committee has been constituted by Dr. Singh for the purpose.
Mr. Shukla who held a meeting with the chief minister and senior state government officials before addressing the press conference, said wide-ranging discussions on methods to speed up relief and rehabilitation process, revival of tourism and restoration of the damaged network of roads were held during the deliberations.
Mr. Shukla said there will be no dearth of funds to carry out relief and rehabilitation operations in the state.
Low visibility conditions continued to affect air relief operations whereas damaged roads also made transportation of relief to affected villages difficult by road, officials said.
The Goepshwar-Chopta road in Rudraparayg is blocked at several places while Rishikesh-Kedarnath NH is open only till Agastyamuni.
Rishikesh Badrinath NH in Chamoli district is blocked by debris near Kameda, Patalganga and Pagalnala.
Bahuguna said opinion of experts will be taken to address the issues of rehabilitation and reconstruction of affected areas.
A meeting of geologists and environmentalists has been convened in this regard on July 21 in Dehradun where a roadmap for redevelopment of rain ravaged areas will be drawn using environment-friendly methods, he told reporters on Sunday.
