Uttarakhand landslide: Rescue operation underway after glacier burst in Indian Himalayas

Rescue operations underway near Tapovan Tunnel, after a glacier broke off in Joshimath causing a massive flood in the Dhauli Ganga river, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.

Members of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) successfully rescued people from the first tunnel and now they are working on the second tunnel which is approximately three kilometers long. 

Indian Air Force helicopter sorties were carried out for insertion of rescue teams before first light. Aerial rescue and relief missions have resumed with Mi-17 and ALH helicopters flying from Dehradun to Joshimath with disaster relief teams on board said the Indian Air Force.

The sudden flood in the Dhauli Ganga, Rishi Ganga and Alaknanda rivers, all intricately linked tributaries of the Ganga, triggered widespread panic and large-scale devastation in the high mountain areas.

The wall of water barrelled down a valley in India's Himalayan north on Sunday morning, destroying bridges, roads and two hydroelectric power plants, including state-run NTPC hydropower project and Rishiganga power project being nearly washed away.