A severe flash flood in Nepal's Rasuwa district has left over 400 pilgrims, many of them Indian nationals undertaking the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, untraceable. Efforts to establish contact and conduct search and rescue operations are underway following the devastating natural disaster.

A severe flash flood in Nepal's Rasuwa district has left over 400 pilgrims, many of them Indian nationals undertaking the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, untraceable. Efforts to establish contact and conduct search and rescue operations are underway following the devastating natural disaster.

A severe flash flood in Nepal's Rasuwa district has left over 400 pilgrims, many of them Indian nationals undertaking the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, untraceable. Efforts to establish contact and conduct search and rescue operations are underway following the devastating natural disaster.

Over 400 pilgrims, the majority of them Indians, heading for the  Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in Tibet, China, are untraceable after a flash flood swept through Nepal’s Rasuwa district.

Bashu Kumar Adhikari, managing director of a Kathmandu-based tour company, told The Kathmandu Post that 390 pilgrims, including 93 Nepalis, were scheduled to cross the border on Wednesday. “Except for a few, we have not been able to establish contact with the pilgrims as of 3 pm,” Adhikari said.

The pilgrims are clients of various travel agencies. The report also quoted Sagar Pandey, president of the Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal, who said efforts were underway to establish contact with the pilgrims and assess their condition.

As per reports, a total of 95 people have been confirmed dead as of 5:45 pm (Nepal time) due to the severe flooding that occurred in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa. According to the data provided by the Nepal Police, the bodies of 27 women, 37 men, 6 girls, 5 boys and 20 unidentified people have been found.

According to data released by the Nepal Tourism Board, a total of 403 tourists have been reported missing due to the floods. Even after a considerable period of time, none of the missing have been found, and search and rescue operations are reportedly ongoing.

Out of the total 403 missing people, 62 are Nepali citizens while the remaining 341 are foreign nationals. The largest number of foreign nationals are from India. 133 Indian citizens are missing in the floods. Similarly, 47 citizens of the United States, 34 from Australia, 33 from the United Kingdom (UK), 24 from Canada, and 19 from Malaysia are on the missing list.

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