Kishtwar Cloudburst: "Urgent Mission to Save Lives" Says Union Minister Singh

Union Minister Jitendra Singh, alongside Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat, visited the cloudburst-ravaged Chisoti village in Kishtwar district late Friday night, emphasizing that the top priority is to locate approximately 75 missing individuals believed to be trapped under debris. The catastrophic cloudburst, which struck at 12:25 pm on August 14, 2025, claimed at least 60 lives, injured over 100, and caused widespread destruction in the remote village, the last motorable stop en route to the Machail Mata temple.

“This is a disaster of unprecedented scale in this region,” Singh told reporters, noting the challenges posed by inclement weather and difficult terrain. Despite these constraints, a coordinated effort involving the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Indian Army, Indian Air Force, Jammu and Kashmir Police, and Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is underway, utilizing specialized equipment to clear debris and search for survivors. Two rescue helicopters stationed in Udhampur are on standby, awaiting improved weather conditions.

The disaster obliterated a makeshift market, a community kitchen for the Machail Mata yatra, a security outpost, 16 residential houses, government buildings, three temples, four water mills, a 30-meter bridge, and over a dozen vehicles. Singh highlighted the government’s swift response, noting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been actively engaged, holding meetings and coordinating with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to ensure comprehensive support.

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“Immediately after the Independence Day programme, I rushed here, reflecting the urgency the Modi government places on this calamity,” Singh said, underscoring the deployment of heavy machinery and personnel despite logistical challenges. He added that the government is prepared to airlift critically injured individuals for specialized treatment outside Jammu if necessary, with chopper services on standby.

The minister also reflected on the region’s recent development, noting that connectivity, electricity, and mobile towers—absent before 2014—had spurred a surge in pilgrims to the Machail Mata shrine, only for the infrastructure to be destroyed in seconds. Addressing potential high-level visits, Singh indicated that current conditions make VVIP travel impractical, but all necessary assistance is being provided.

As rescue operations intensify with nearly a dozen earth-movers and NDRF dog squads, the focus remains on locating the missing and providing relief to affected families, marking a critical effort to mitigate one of the region’s worst natural disasters.

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