kin of missing still waiting for their loved ones to return from badrinath, kedarnath

Kathmandu, July 3: Kin of the Nepali pilgrims missing in Badrinath and Kedarnath have begun to return to their homes from India after failing to find any trace of their loved ones.

Hundreds of Nepali people are still missing in Gourikund, Rambana, and Kedarnath among other areas in Uttarakhand of India.

The missing pilgrims who were on pilgrimage to Badrinath and Kedarnath were caught off guard in the Himalayan Tsunami that took place in mid June this year. 

A nine member-team that left for Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath, popularly known as char dham, from Gaindakot of Nawalparasi district, is still out of contact. They had left for Char Dham on June 2.

Nirajan Paudel, son of missing Ram Kala Upadhyay, who had reached Uttarakhand in search of his mother, maternal uncle and aunt Dev Narayan Sharma and Hira Devi Sharma, respectively, including the other members of the team, told RSS over phone that they did not find any sign of the missing in every possible location that they could have been to during the tour.

He said they had to face difficulties during their visit for finding the condition of the missing due to damaged road condition on the way to Rishikesh and Haridwar. 

Paudel and his team are arriving Nepal through Rupaidia on Wednesday.

Similarly, family members of Dipak Singh Bhandari of Bhamarbhoj, Jhalari VDC Ward No. 4 from Kanchanpur district have been worried as he has not returned from Kedarnath.

Bhandari, who had gone to pay obeisance to Kedarnath and also visit his relatives in Rambana after he attended an interview to go abroad in course of foreign employment, has not returned home from Kedarnath. He had left for Kedarnath on June 13 from Kanchanpur.

"We lost contact with our brother Dipak since the disastrous floods in Kedarnath," said Dipak's brother Prakash.

Dipak has been missing after they were separated while trying to escape the floods, reported Man Singh Bohara, his cousin. 

Prakash returned hopeless only today after his week-long visit to the flood affected area.

"We have filed complaints at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through District Administration Office, Kanchanpur, for his search but no message has been received so far," Prakash said.

Besides them, condition of many other Nepali pilgrims who had gone on a Char Dham pilgrimage as well as many others who worked in the areas affected by floods is still  unknown. RSS