Nepal Floods Leave 32 Kolkata Tourists Untraceable As West Bengal Families Await Information

A 32-member group from Kolkata undertaking the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra is among several people from West Bengal who remain untraceable after flash floods struck the Nepal-Tibet border on Wednesday, an official said. The group, comprising 30 tourists and two tour managers, had left Kolkata on August 21 and reached Nepal the following day. There has been no communication with any of the 32 members since the flooding hit the area. According to the official, the group reached Rasuwagadhi on Wednesday morning to cross into Tibet. The members were reportedly at the immigration office at around 8.30 am when the sudden flash flood struck the area along the Nepal-Tibet border.

The group was travelling as part of the pilgrimage to Kailash-Mansarovar, a route that attracts pilgrims from across India. "There has been no communication with any of the 32 members since the flash flood struck the area," the official told PTI. Authorities and officials in West Bengal are attempting to establish contact with the group and determine their whereabouts. The disruption of communications in the affected region has made it difficult to obtain immediate information about the condition of those stranded or missing. "We are trying to establish contact with all those from West Bengal who may have been in the affected areas.

The situation on the ground is extremely difficult, and communication has been disrupted," the official said. The authorities are also attempting to identify other people from West Bengal who may have been travelling through the affected parts of Nepal when the disaster occurred. The Kolkata group is among a much larger number of people affected by the flash floods. More than 100 people were reported killed, while over 750 remained missing, including 133 Indian nationals, after floodwaters originating in Tibet swept through central Nepal. The disaster devastated towns and villages, damaged transport links and washed away critical bridges, severely hampering movement and rescue operations.

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The scale of the destruction has also affected critical infrastructure in the region. Around a dozen hydropower projects were reportedly crippled by the floods, while damage to bridges and other infrastructure has made access to affected areas more difficult. The combination of widespread destruction and disrupted communications has complicated efforts to establish the status of people who were travelling through the region. For families in West Bengal, the absence of communication with the 32-member Kolkata group has added to the uncertainty. The pilgrims had travelled to Nepal only days earlier and were preparing to cross into Tibet when the disaster struck.

With no direct contact possible, relatives and authorities are awaiting information from officials involved in rescue and relief operations. The incident has also highlighted the risks faced by pilgrims and tourists travelling through mountainous border regions. Areas around the Nepal-Tibet frontier can be difficult to access even under normal circumstances, while sudden floods can rapidly disrupt roads, bridges and communication networks. The loss of infrastructure following Wednesday's disaster has made locating and evacuating stranded travellers considerably more challenging. Officials in West Bengal are continuing efforts to identify and contact people from the state who may have been caught in the affected areas.

The 32-member Kolkata group remains among those whose whereabouts have not been confirmed. Authorities are expected to seek information through Nepalese agencies and other channels as rescue operations continue. The immediate priority is to establish contact with the missing pilgrims and determine whether they are safe or require evacuation. Until reliable information emerges from the affected region, the condition and whereabouts of the 30 tourists and two tour managers remain unclear. The wider disaster has already caused a significant loss of life and left hundreds missing, including a large number of Indian nationals.

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