Nepal floods: MEA releases names of 21 rescued Indians, 288 remain uncontactable
MEA spokesman Randhir Jaiswal. Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
New Delhi: Twenty-one Indian nationals from Tamil Nadu have been rescued from flood-hit Nepal, with the external affairs ministry releasing their names on Thursday as efforts continued to trace 288 Indians who remain uncontactable. The rescued Indians were travelling for the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra and were among those caught in the flash floods that disrupted roads and communications around Rasuwa district near the Nepal-Tibet border.
The Nepali Army rescued the 21 Indians from Timure in Rasuwa as part of an operation in which 116 people were brought to safety, including 95 Nepali citizens. The MEA subsequently released the names of the rescued Indians.
MEA spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said, “As per information currently available, there are 288 Indian nationals who remain uncontactable.” He said the figure included Indians working at a hydropower project as well as groups travelling through different tour operators.
Names of 21 Indians rescued
The MEA identified the rescued Indian nationals as:
- Kalaimathi Pazhaniyappan
- Kanagasabai Natesa Pillai
- Kanagasabai Natesapillai
- Karpagam Rajamohan
- Kirubagari Balasubramaniyam
- Maran Govindasamy
- Muthukumaresan Ramalingam
- Mythili Muthukumaresan
- Navu Kabirdoss
- Pazhaniyappan Maickaperumal
- Poonguzhali Ponnambalam
- Radhai Kanagasabai
- Raghunathan Muniraj
- Rathinakumar Kunchithapatham
- Sathiya Jayaraman
- Shanthi Maran
- Sivaranjani Muthunathan
- Thirumavalavan Govindarasu
- Thiyagarajan Rathinam
- Vallinayaki Sivakumar
- Vijayabhuvaneswari Viswanathan
All 21 are from Tamil Nadu and had travelled to Nepal for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.
288 Indians remain uncontactable
Jaiswal said the 288 uncontactable Indians included 73 Indian nationals working at the Trishuli-1 Power Project. The Indian embassy in Kathmandu was in contact with the project management to obtain information about them.
The MEA also identified two separate groups from Tamil Nadu travelling for the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra. One comprised 37 Indians travelling through Samrat Travels, while another comprised 49 Indians travelling through Fly Everest Travels.
Another 32 Indians from West Bengal, who had travelled with Samrat Travels, were reported to have been in Timure in Rasuwa district when communications were disrupted.
The ministry also identified 61 Indians from different states travelling through Richa Tours and a separate group of 33 people from Kerala among those authorities were trying to contact.
The figures cited for these groups add up to 285. The MEA gave the overall figure as 288 and did not provide details for the remaining three in the briefing.
The MEA used the term “uncontactable” rather than describing all 288 as missing. Jaiswal said communication lines in the affected areas had been severely disrupted, making it difficult to establish contact with people on the ground.
RNA Media had earlier reported on the then-preliminary Nepal Tourism Board list of 384 travellers reported missing or out of contact. The latest MEA briefing provides a more specific and current account of Indian nationals affected by the floods.
Around 200 Indians seek evacuation from Chinese side
A separate group of approximately 200 Indian nationals on the Chinese side has sought India’s assistance for evacuation, according to the MEA.
Jaiswal said 95 Indians were in Darchen and moving towards the Nepal border, while other groups were in or travelling through areas including Zutulpuk and Saga.
The Indian embassy in Beijing is coordinating with Chinese authorities over their movement and evacuation.
The Chinese-side group is being handled separately and is not part of the 288 Indians currently uncontactable in Nepal.
India sends 47.5 tonnes of relief material
India has also stepped up humanitarian assistance to Nepal, dispatching a total of 47.5 tonnes of relief material in two consignments.
The first tranche comprised 10 tonnes of humanitarian assistance, while a second consignment of 37.5 tonnes included disaster-relief material, medicines and food packets.
The Indian embassy in Kathmandu remains engaged with Nepali authorities over assistance to Indian nationals affected by the floods.
