In an unprecedented incident, a glacier in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district burst early Sunday causing massive flood in the Dhauliganga river near Raini village.
The Indo-Tibetan Border police (ITBP) have reached the disaster spot to assess the situation and rescue the village people. No casualty has been reported so far.
"Two teams of ITBP reached the spot, three NDRF teams have been rushed from Dehradun and four additional teams will reach there with help of the IAF chopper till evening. SDRF and local administration already at the spot," said MoS Home Nityanand Rai.
Several people are feared missing as the water level in the affected river suddenly rose after the glacier burst near a power project. According to SDRF DIG Ridhim Agarwal, more than 150 labourers working at a power project may have been directly affected.
Meanwhile, Chamoli police informed that the power project has been damaged due to the avalanche. They have issued an advisory urging people to evacuate at the earliest.
Authorities in all districts of the state have been asked to be on high alert and continuously monitor the water level in the river.
"The district administration, police and disaster management departments have been directed to deal with the situation. Do not pay attention to any kind of rumours. Govt is taking all necessary steps", Uttarakhand CM TS Rawat told ANI.
"As a precautionary measure, the flow of Bhagirathi River has been stopped. To prevent the flow of water of Alaknanda, Srinagar Dam and Rishikesh Dam have been emptied. I am leaving for the spot", he added.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to CM Rawat and took stock of the situation.
"Regarding the natural disaster in Uttarakhand, I've spoken to CM TS Rawat, DGs of ITBP & NDRF. All officers concerned are working on a war footing to rescue people. NDRF teams have left for rescue operations. Every possible help will be provided to Devbhoomi", tweeted Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
"Some more NDRF teams are being airlifted to Uttarakhand from Delhi. We are constantly monitoring the situation," he added.
