5 Odisha Devotees Stranded In Amarnath Seek Help For Safe Return

Rayagada: Five devotees from Odisha, who have been stranded near the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in Jammu and Kashmir due to flash flood triggered by a cloudburst, have appealed to Rayagada district administration to help them return to their homes.

In a video message, the devotees, identified as Basant Kumar Senapati, Soumya Ranjan Patra, K Rabi Kumar and Tukuna Pradhan, said they had returned to their tents of temporary camp after visiting the shrine when the cloudburst took place at around 5.30 pm on Friday. As the flash flood triggered by the cloudburst swept away their tents, they narrowly survived and managed to escape to higher land.

They further said on the instruction of the CRPF personnel engaged in rescue operation at the spot, they had to trek through tough and hostile terrain on foot for nearly 18 km to Baltal. They wanted to return to a hotel in Jammu where they have kept their luggage.

Since there is no communication facility from Baltal to Jammu, the devotees appealed to Rayagada district administration to make arrangement for their transportation so that they could reach their homes.

On coming to know their plight, the district collector has talked with his counterpart in Jammu. Efforts are going on for safe return of the stranded devotees from Baltal, the collector said.