23 pilgrims stranded in Tibet after bridge collapse
Mumbai, July 9 -- A group of 23 Indian pilgrims-15 from Mumbai and the rest from Dubai-returning from an eight-day, private tour of Kailash Mansarovar are stranded in Gyirong county, Tibet, after a key bridge connecting the autonomous region with Nepal collapsed early Tuesday due to a landslide triggered by floods.
Some of the stranded pilgrims HT spoke to said the collapsed Miteri Bridge was effectively their only route back to Kathmandu, as flight operators were charging over Rs.3.6 lakh per person for taking an alternative route via Lhasa, as opposed to the standard rate of Rs.40,000.
People familiar with the developments said the Indian embassy in Nepal has taken up the matter with Nepalese authorities to facilitate the speedy return of the group, which had gone for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra via Nepal through a private tour operator. "Since the group had gone via Nepal, it has to return via Nepal. The group is currently stuck in Tibet because the landslide cut off a road," one of the people cited above said.
The group of 23 Indian nationals from Mumbai and Dubai, including family members and friends, landed in Kathmandu on June 26 for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. They undertook a private tour after failing to get slots for the pilgrimage organised by the Indian government. The external affairs ministry chose 750 people for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through a computerised draw in May. In addition to these pilgrims, many other Indians travel to Mount Kailash and Mansarovar Lake in Tibet via Nepal with private operators.
After completing their pilgrimage, when the group reached the Gyirong border by bus on Tuesday to cross over to Nepal, they were told they would not be able to move ahead due to the collapse of the Miteri Bridge. The group is now appealing for authorities to open the Kodari border crossing, which is 150 km away from Gyirong, to enable an alternative route back to India. They also estimated that at least 200 pilgrims from India, Malaysia, and the United Arab Emirates were stuck in Gyirong. HT was unable to independently verify this information.
Simran Jumani, 53, an advocate and resident of Mumbai who went for the pilgrimage with her husband, said, "Our hotel is an hour away from the Gyirong border, which we reached at 5 am and were turned away. They have not allowed us to go through the Kodari border. It will take us two days to get to Lhasa, where the flight costs to get to India have skyrocketed to over Rs.3 lakh. We started reaching out to the Chinese and Indian embassies, the foreign minister and many more in the government. We received a call from the Indian embassy [in Nepal] sometime ago. They have assured us that they will expedite our rescue from here, and that they are talking to the Nepalese authorities for the same."
Another group member, Ekta Desai, a 50-year-old Dubai resident, said she discovered that her father-in-law had passed away while she was on the trip. "My family is waiting for me to get home for the last rites, but I have no way of going to them. They can at least split our group visa and fly some of us who need to urgently leave from here. I am devastated and scared about what will happen. I don't even know if I will get home in time. If the authorities open the Kodari border, we will at least be able to get home."
Vinod Kumar Vyas, 53, another resident of Dubai, said, "It is a very unfortunate situation for us. There is no certainty as to what will happen and when we can get out. There has been no clear update so far. We did ask for them to let us out through the Kodari border, but we received information that there was a landslide there as well. We are awaiting the exit permits from the local authorities to cross the Kodari border, which we will only receive with the Indian government's support. It is a three-and-a-half-hour journey to Kathmandu from there. We hope we are rescued safely."
Shishu Yadava, 61, a resident of Mumbai who went on the pilgrimage with his daughter, said they were both extremely scared and frustrated. "We were lucky enough not to be present at Gyirong when the floods occurred. But it is scarier to be in this situation now. I am here with my daughter, and we just want to return home as soon as possible," he said.
Jitendra Shahi, managing director of Mountain Gaze Travels & Treks, the Kathmandu-based travel agency that took the group on the pilgrimage, told HT by text, "The 23 people in our group are safe in Gyirong. However, there is a problem with their exit from the region."
At least one person was killed and over a dozen were missing after floods caused by heavy rainfall led to a landslide and the collapse of the Miteri Bridge on Tuesday. The flash flood occurred in the Bhotekoshi River, sweeping away the bridge....
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