Nepal floods: A saree saves 21 Tamil Nadu pilgrims on Mount Kailash yatra. This is how
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Nepal floods: A saree saves 21 Tamil Nadu pilgrims on Mount Kailash yatra. This is how")
People visit a damaged Buddhist stupa after flash floods at Trishuli Center in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 31, 2026. Photograph: (AFP)
During Nepal floods, 21 Tamil Nadu pilgrims stranded near Timure were rescued when a couple used a saree as a makeshift rope to pull them up a steep slope.
A saree became a lifeline for 21 pilgrims from Tamil Nadu after floods and mudslides struck Nepal during their Mount Kailash yatra. The pilgrims were near Timure in Nepal on Wednesday (Aug 26) when a sudden surge of water and debris swept through the area. Their vehicle narrowly escaped being carried away after stopping at a relatively safe bend as the floodwaters crashed nearby.
The group reportedly got out of the vehicle and attempted to climb a steep, muddy embankment to reach higher ground. The slope was slippery, making it difficult for several pilgrims, particularly the women, to climb to safety.
Pilgrim Ratnakumar and his wife, Poonguzhali, managed to reach higher ground. Seeing other women struggling below, Poonguzhali reportedly removed her saree after putting on a sweater and lowered the garment down the slope. The stranded pilgrims held on to the saree, along with a metal cable, as Ratnakumar, Poonguzhali and others pulled them up one by one.
The group reportedly spent nearly two days with minimal food and bottled water supplied by local residents while remaining in contact with authorities. The Indian Embassy, Nepal Army and Tamil Nadu government officials coordinated the rescue operation, with the survivors eventually airlifted and brought back to India, according to a PTI report.
Thousands still missing
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The disaster has caused widespread devastation across Nepal. The death toll from the flash floods rose to 903 on Monday, while 4,247 people remain missing, authorities said.
According to Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), 272 bodies have been recovered from Chitwan, 207 from Nawalparasi East, 151 from Nawalparasi West and 62 from Gorkha.
Also read: Man uses AI to fake Rs 1.2 lakh Nepal flood donation, diverts relief funds via own QR code
