60 from Maha still untraceable in Nepal & Tibet amid flood crisis

Pune: A senior disaster management official told TOI on Friday that 395 people from Maharashtra had travelled to the Nepal-Tibet region when the floods struck. Around 60 people were untraceable, while several others were in contact with authorities and some groups were on their way back.The official said teams from India had been sent to the affected region to help trace the missing, while the ministry of external affairs remained in close contact with authorities. Rescue operations from the Nepal side have reached some areas, but not the flood-ravaged places, he said. Sixty people from the state are missing, he added.The official said 37 people stranded in Saga, Tibet, were returning on Friday, while 105 tourists from Nagpur travelling from the Kathmandu side were also on their way back. Authorities were trying to establish contact with the remaining groups.Meanwhile, the situation has impacted upcoming Nepal tours from Maharashtra, with some travellers cancelling or putting their plans on hold amid safety concerns.Vishwajeet Singh, owner of Jeet Brothers Travels and Holidays, said his company had seven group bookings for the first week of Sept and three of them had already been cancelled. The bookings were for Lumbini, Pokhara and Kathmandu.“Passengers felt they might not be able to travel safely to Nepal and opted out. We did not put too much pressure on them and have kept their bookings on hold for a later date,” Singh said.He said that currently, there were no fresh bookings to Nepal with his company, while some earlier trips had already been completed.Singh said 14 of his passengers had been in Kathmandu and were supposed to travel to Pokhara when tragedy hit. “They wanted to continue their holiday, so our company booked them on a flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara and arranged local vehicles for the rest of their itinerary,” he added.Rishikesh Pujari, director of Vihar Travels, said there was no clarity on the extent of damage in Nepal. “People who have already booked are asking what is expected to happen. As of now, it is a wait-and-watch situation,” he said.Pujari said Nepal’s peak season begins after Ganapati, with standalone tours mainly to Kathmandu, Pokhara and Chitwan. The uncertainty was affecting enquiries for travellers who have not yet booked. “They will either shift or might wait for some more clarity,” he said, adding that his company was not even actively pursuing fresh enquiries for Nepal.The disaster management official said the department was also working to segregate the 60 untraced people district-wise. In Pune, the district administration’s latest list of people in Nepal has nine names. Eight have been reported safe and are in touch with the district control room, while one has been listed as missing.