Dehradun: As the rescue operations reached their final leg in the flood-hit Uttarakhand on Saturday, over four thousand are still missing and hundreds continue to be stranded. Around 4,650 are still reported as missing in the devastating floods that have claimed 842 lives so far, official figures state.
Meanwhile, weather conditions in Joshimath improved which aided air rescue operations. Officials have said that improvement in the weather will help them evacuate all the stranded people in the area. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has started pulling out most of its aircraft from the area keeping some of it on standby at Dharasu and Gauchar.
Even as people continue to remain stranded in the rain-hit state, the Army Chief assured that the armed forces will stay till all the people are rescued from the area. Connectivity is a major problem in the area as the massive floods have completely destroyed roads and foot tracks. Meanwhile, mass cremation of bodies continues to take place in Kedarnath which was the worst-affected in flood fury, sources said.
