New Delhi [India], August 30 : A specialised tunnel search and rescue team from India joined forces with the Nepali Army on Sunday to conduct intensive rescue operations across disaster-affected hydropower tunnel sites in Nepal's Chilime and Langtang regions.
The deployment comes as security forces intensify efforts to reach workers trapped inside flood-hit underground powerhouses and tunnels following devastating flash floods across the Trishuli basin.
The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that the specialised team has been integrated into local operations, working side-by-side with security personnel on the ground.
"India's tunnel rescue team joined the Nepali Army in search & rescue operations at hydropower tunnel sites in the Chilime and Langtang areas today," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal wrote on X.
https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/2094089066547679503
In an official statement, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu noted, "The tunnel rescue team from India worked with the Nepali Army's team to conduct search & rescue operations at hydropower tunnel sites in Chilime and Langtang area today. The team will continue to conduct search and rescue operations in close coordination with the Nepali Army."
Highlighting the importance of joint operations, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava reaffirmed India's commitment to supporting Nepal's disaster response.
"Specialised team from India for Tunnel Search & Rescue operation worked with the Nepali Army's team at hydropower tunnel sites in Chilime and Langtang area today. The team will continue to conduct search and rescue operations in close coordination with the Nepali Army."
Equipped with specialised technical tools, the Indian experts arrived to reinforce search efforts in difficult mountain terrain and narrow gorges where rising water levels and heavy debris have hindered access to underground structures. Joint search and rescue operations between the two nations remain ongoing.
This comes as the total number of bodies recovered following the devastating flash floods in Nepal has reached 788 as of 3 PM on Sunday, Nepal Police announced.
According to the updated data, the highest number of fatalities has been recorded in Chitwan with 264 deaths, followed by Nawalparasi East with 194, Nawalparasi West with 120, Gorkha with 58, Nuwakot with 52, Dhading with 50, Tanahun with 37, and Rasuwa with 13.
Earlier, Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction & Management Authority (NDRRMA) announced that as of 1 PM, 2,502 individuals remain missing as rescue operations continue across multiple affected areas.
Unidentified bodies are being stored at 21 hospitals nationwide while authorities work on identification procedures.Out of the total missing persons, NDRRMA stated that 933 are workers from regional hydropower projects, 592 are foreign nationals, and 127 are Nepali citizens travelling with foreign groups.
Dozens of missing reports also include personnel from the Nepal Police, Nepal Army, Armed Police Force, Customs Office, and Immigration Office. Authorities report 239 injured individuals are currently receiving care or have been discharged, supported by six surgical medical teams deployed to the disaster zone.
Nearly 20,000 security personnel have been deployed, leading to 8,730 total rescues by ground forces. Air crews have conducted 363 helicopter flights, airlifting 3,081 people, including 236 foreigners, and rescuing 279 individuals directly from a flooded hydropower tunnel over recent days.
Earlier on Saturday, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that four Indian nationals trapped at a hydropower project in Rasuwa were rescued today as search and emergency operations intensify across Nepal following catastrophic flash flooding.
The rescued individuals, identified by the Ministry as Ripu Kumar, Chaneshwar Narzary, Kripa Shankar, and Mohammed Minhajuddin, are being transported to Kathmandu.