Kupwara: Police on Sunday rescued 18 of the stranded passengers from the Sadhna Top in Kupwara and also managed to bring the body of the deceased lady.
The rescue operation was launched Sunday morning and was joined by locals and some relatives of the stranded passengers.
“A party left early in the morning and later we too moved towards them till the point vehicle could move. Then crossed almost 17 kilometeres on foot, ” SHO karnah Nasir Ahmad told KC.
Nasir led the special rescue ooerations and said that near Zangla point they recieved the body and the party that had already left retrieved the passengers as well.
“We moved through short cut ways to bring back them to nearest safe point,” Nasir said.
Nasir said that he is moving towards tangdhar with the 18 passengers and body.
Asked about the rest of the stranded people he said that they have been shifted to a R&B building at Sadhna top.
“The people there are women, children and aged people. We didn’t took them along as it’s a long way to walk and they couldn’t do it,” he said, adding that they are safe there.
Sources said that the people stranded have been helped by Army in the snow locked hilly range.
“There is an army camp at the hill top. They have supplied necessary items from there, ” he said.
Ssp Kupwara Shriram Ambarkar told kc that he is personally monitoring the situation and they had deputed special teams to the operation.
He said that he hoped that all the people stuck at the hill range will be brought back soon.
It is pertinent to mention that there is avalanche warning in the area but still the operation was launched.
“We have asked the Beacon to clear the road,” SDM Tangdhar Aliyas Ahmad said.