J-K LG expresses grief over loss of lives in Kishtwar cloud burst incident

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday expressed grief over the loss of lives due to flash floods caused by a cloud burst in Dacchan, Kishtwar.

The LG, who is continuously monitoring the situation, has spoken to senior authorities and the district administration.

Army and State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) teams are working on war footing to rescue people and trace the missing persons.

"Saddened over loss of precious lives due to flash floods caused by cloud burst in Dacchan, Kishtwar. My thoughts are with bereaved families," the office of LG said in a tweet.

"Spoke to senior authorities and district administration. Army and SDRF team working on war footing to rescue people and trace the missing persons. I am continuously monitoring the situation," it added.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah informed that he has spoken to the LG and Director General of Police (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir regarding the cloudburst in Kishtwar.

"SDRF, Army and local administration are carrying out the rescue operation. NDRF is also reaching there. Our priority is to save as many lives as possible," Shah said.

As many as four bodies have been recovered and around 30-40 people are missing after a cloudburst in the Gulabgarh area of Kishtwar district on Wednesday morning, said Kishtwar district deputy commissioner.Eight-nine houses in Honzar village of the district have been damaged.The deputy commissioner further said that rescue operations have been launched.

( With inputs from ANI )