Student from West Bengal yet to be traced – Times of India

KOLKATA: Families in Bengal spent sleepless nights and a traumatic day, desperately trying to get some news of their near and dear ones, whom they could not contact following cloudburst at Amarnath that swept away several tents. A university student from Baruipur was yet to be traced, but most others-a trekker from Maniktala and a mother-daughter duo from Howrah-could finally be found and they were last said to be at various camps, waiting to be brought back home.
The student, Barsha Muhuri, had gone to Amarnath with her mother Nibedita and uncle Subrata Chowdhury. Bikash Datta, councillor of Ward 6 of Baruipur Municipality, said, “Their family managed to get in touch with Uday Ghosh, a neighbour, who is also with the group. He said among the seven members in the group, Barsha is still missing.” Her mother and uncle have been found.
Among those who were finally traced late on Saturday evening were Howrah resident Shobha Singh (70) and her daughter, Jhuma. Shobha had gone for pilgrimage with her daughters Priti and Jhuma. They were at a camp near the Amarnath caves when the natural disaster struck. “Priti called me up on Friday evening and said their tent had been swept away and that our mother and Jhuma could not be found,” said Soma Singh, the eldest of the siblings. But the National Disaster Response Force managed to trace the mother-daughter duo and took them to a medical camp at Baltal. A Howrah City Police officer said they might be brought to Jammu on Sunday. Dibyendu Roy, an avid trekker, also could not be contacted for a night but his family could finally connect with him on Saturday. “We managed to contact him in the morning. It was a sleepless night for us,” said his daughter, Sudisha Roy.
Amateur radio operators from Bengal have set up a communication system near the accident site. “Enquiries for missing persons have been pouring in. We are yet to get any confirmation on missing or deceased people,” said Pradip Bharadwaj, a member of West Bengal Radio Club.
Bipul Ghosh, a resident of Dakshindari, is part of a seven-member group that was supposed to head out for the caves on Saturday. They have been stranded at Chandanwari camp. “We reached Chandanwari by 6pm on Friday. We were taking rest in the tents, when a message reached the jawans that a massive flash flood had washed away several tents,” Ghosh told TOI over phone from the camp. To reach Pahalgam, pilgrims have to climb the hills to reach Pissu Top. The next stop is at Sheshnag, from where Amarnath caves are 6km away. “There were many groups from Bengal. Some left for Amarnath before we did,” said Subhradeb Pan from Purulia, part of the group.
A team of 10 pilgrims from Keshiari and Dantan in West Midnapore has also been stranded. “They are safe and I have spoken to a member,” said Ayesha Rani, DM, West Midnapore.