Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday said that he was “blissfully unaware” of the devastation caused by a sudden flash flood in Nepal’s Rasuwa district when he left for Kathmandu on Wednesday.“A severe, sudden flash flood struck northern Nepal’s Rasuwa district near the Tibet border, causing widespread destruction along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers. Global warming and/or an earthquake in Tibet may have caused a large chunk of a glacier to break off and fall into the valley below, experts surmise,” Tharoor said in a post on X.Tharoor added that the flooding had destroyed at least 19 motorable bridges and washed away around 40 km of the Betrawati–Rasuwagadhi highway. Eight operational hydropower projects were also reported to have sustained heavy damage.Tharoor said he supported the Indian government’s immediate pledge of relief assistance to Nepal, adding that the country would need substantial help in responding to the destruction.He also expressed concern over the loss of life and those still missing, including Indians affected by the disaster.“I fully support the Indian government’s immediate pledge of relief assistance. Nepal needs all the help it can get. My heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones, who include large numbers of Indian tourists, including a hundred performing the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra. Prayers for the missing; may they be rescued soon,” Tharoor said.The disaster has left at least 270 people dead and 826 missing in Nepal, while three people have died and 558 remain unaccounted for in Tibet, according to authorities.The scale of destruction has hampered rescue operations, with Nepalese officials reporting that dozens of bridges were destroyed and nearly 40 kilometres (25 miles) of roads damaged.The Nepalese Army launched helicopter operations on Thursday morning, rescuing more than 100 people from flood-affected areas, army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet said. At least eight foreign nationals were also airlifted to Kathmandu, while army teams evacuated people trapped inside facilities associated with the Trishuli hydropower project.India is also coordinating efforts to assist its nationals stranded in the affected areas. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said five major groups, comprising around 288 Indian nationals, had been identified.“ The first group of 73 people who are working on the Trishuli-1 power project. Then, two separate groups of 37 and 49 nationals from Tamil Nadu, who traveled for Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through Samrat and Fly Everest Travels. There is a group of 32 Indian nationals from West Bengal who traveled with the help of Samrat Travels in Timure, which is in Rasuwa district.”“Then, a group of 61 Indian nationals from different states and then a group of 33 Indian nationals from Kerala. These are five major groups who comprise, by and large, 288 people that we are talking about,” he added.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah and offered India’s assistance for rescue and relief operations.“India is prepared to provide Nepal with all possible types of humanitarian assistance,” PM Modi said, adding that Indian teams were coordinating rescue and relief efforts.The United Nations is also supporting the response, with agencies deploying personnel to assist local authorities. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric warned of a “massive humanitarian need” as rescue and relief operations continued.The disaster has also renewed concerns over the Himalayan region’s exposure to extreme weather events and glacial hazards, particularly in areas where difficult terrain and damaged infrastructure can complicate emergency response.
