ITBP provide food and water to 4000 victims in Leh

New Delhi, Aug 8 (ANI): On third day of the Rescue and Relief Operation in Leh, about 1,000 Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel provided food and drinking water to over 4000 affected persons.

Over 400 homeless victims have been accommodated in three ITBP relief camps.

The ITBP has also opened a permanent medical camp at Sabu village in Leh. Over 70 injured are admitted in Disaster Ward of ITBP.

Besides, it has also provided hundreds of blankets and tents to homeless victims.

The personnel of the ITBP have retrieved a few more dead bodies from the debris. It is an arduous task as debris at some places is 16-feet high and big boulders and broken structures of building are also lying in it.

Availability of drinking water is a major problem in the region as dead bodies humans, animals and oil leakage from trapped and damaged vehicles contaminate most of the water sources.

The ITBP is providing drinking water to the victims in its relief camps and residents of Choglumsar and Sabu villages.

Despite the fact that ITBP buildings are also damaged and its jawans were also injured, they have provided their own accommodation for the affected homeless villagers.

Leh has become the highest Disaster ground. Carrying Search and Rescue work at altitude of more than 11500ft in the cold dessert and difficult climatic conditions of Leh is very difficult and dangerous.

The Search and Rescue work involves digging mud, debris, removing heavy parts of collapsed buildings, furniture, broken glasses and metallic parts etc. It poses hazards to rescuers also.

Undeterred by all these difficulties and challenges, ITBP jawans are doing search, rescue and relief work from last 72 hours.

ITBP has established free food stalls and more than 4000 victims have got quality food and water from these stalls.

Kumbha Hall, one of its big auditoriums, has been converted into Disaster wards.

More than 200 injured were treated in ITBP hospitals and medical camps.

Around midnight a cloud burst occurred in catchment area of Sabu nala and at about 0100 Hrs the fast flowing muddy water, debris and slush hit Sabu and Choglumsar village, ITBP campus and nearby downhill areas.

ITBP launched an extensive search and rescue work at 0100Hrs on August 6 only. All the battalions of ITBP under command of Sector DIG(LEH) of ITBP pressed their Integrated Searchand Rescue team in the relief work.

These teams are acclimatized and equipped with specialized equipments used for search and rescue work at high altitude mountainous areas. These teams are trained for such types of search and rescue work as ITBP does most of the search and rescue work in high Himalayas. (ANI)