207 killed in Uttarakhand till now

New Delhi, June 21: Over 200 people have lost their lives, while over 50,000 people are still stranded in different inaccessible parts of Uttarakhand hit by flash floods and landslides, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today said.

"So far, 207 people lost their lives. However, the toll may go up as debris in many areas is yet to be cleared," he told reporters here.

"We have evacuated 34,000 people from various parts of Uttarakhand, but 50,000 people are still stranded. Our efforts to rescue all the stranded people continues," he said after a review meeting on the situation in Uttarakhand. Till now, 43 army and IAF choppers have been deployed to fast track the rescue operations. 13 aircrafts, apart from choppers have also been put to use for effective results.

The army hopes to rescue many more people in the next 24 hours.

PTI