A multi-agency rescue operation has been launched by India's armed forces and disaster management agencies—Indian Army, BRO (Border Roads Organisation), ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police), NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) and SDRF (State Disaster Response Force)—in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, following devastating flash floods and a cloudburst.
Infantry, engineers, medical teams, helicopters, drones, and specialised equipment have been deployed to assist the operations.
NDRF rescuers, two cadaver dogs and veterinarians joined rescue operations in the flood-ravaged Dharali village in Uttarkashi on Thursday. NDRF has pressed into service its first-ever team of cadaver dogs, trained to sniff out the dead buried beneath the debris and slush, for the rescue operations.
READ MORE: Uttarakhand disaster: What triggered the Uttarkashi flash floods? | Explained
NDRF Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Gambhir Singh Chauhan said apart from cadaver dogs, four sniffer dogs who can sniff out survivors, have also been pressed into service.
"Our four machines are working in this operation. The Director General of Border Roads and our chief also visited here. At least 20-40 houses are still buried and fully damaged...So far, 150-175 people have been rescued by BRO, ITBP, NDRF, and SDRF. A total of five bodies have been recovered so far," news agency ANI quoted Amit Kumar of Border Roads Organisation (BRO) as saying.
#WATCH | Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand: Amit Kumar from BRO says, "Our four machines are working in this operation. The Director General of Border Roads and our chief also visited here. At least 20-40 houses are still buried and fully damaged...So far, 150-175 people have been rescued… https://t.co/GTzFlTvDoM pic.twitter.com/dr2srAimdu
— ANI (@ANI) August 7, 2025
Captain Gurpreet Singh from the Engineer Regiment of the Indian Army forces arrived in Uttarkashi soon after the reports of a cloudburst to rescue as many people as possible.
"Engineers are the technical team, and we have a plan to bring machinery soon that will help us find bodies buried in the debris. Additionally, we are making use of whatever makeshift resources we have," ANI quoted him as saying.
According to him, 250-300 army personnel are engaged in rescue operations.
Along with the state police, NDRF, and the Indian Army, ITBP has started a rescue or swift action programme, Suresh Yadav, assistant commandant with ITBP, said.
“In the initial phase, people who survived from the Gangotri side were rescued. Eight people from the village are missing. Some 30-40 people from Bihar and Nepal are estimated to be missing. Around 250-300 people who are stranded in Gangotri are being rescued,” he added.
