Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s aircraft, which was en route to Jammu from New Delhi for a visit to cloudburst-hit Chashoti in Kishtwar district, had to return midway to Delhi after developing a technical snag. However, he will reach Jammu shortly in another Aircraft.
Officials confirmed that the Defence Minister will now travel in another plane and is expected to arrive in Jammu shortly to review the ground situation in the affected area. Rajnath Singh was accompanied by Union Minister of State in the PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh, during the flight.
The Defence Minister is scheduled to undertake an aerial survey and also review relief and rescue measures being carried out in Kishtwar, where at least 32 people remain missing after the devastating cloudburst. He will hold a high-level meeting with senior officers of Army, other security agencies and administration at Gulabgarh in Kishtwar district tomorrow during his one-day visit to review relief and rescue operations at cloudburst-hit Chashoti village in which 65 persons have died and nearly 30 others are still missing.
Apart from Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also Lok Sabha member from the area , the Defence Minister will be accompanied by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. Earlier they were scheduled to reach Chashoti by road around 2 PM, but due to this development, the timings are set to change now.
The Defence Minister will inspect relief and rescue operations which are going on at Chashoti as nearly 30 people are still missing while 65 bodies have been recovered. Over 100 persons were injured and many of them have recovered and have been discharged from different hospitals.Besides, Rajnath Singh will meet the teams of multiple agencies including Army, NDRF, SDRF, CRPF, CISF, Jammu and Kashmir Police, civil administration besides locals who have been engaged in rescue mission since August 14 when the cloudburst struck Chashoti leading to death and destruction at large scale.
He will examine the damage caused to local houses, shops and infrastructure and will interact with the victims.The Defence Minister will return to Gulabgarh where he will preside over an hour long meeting with the officers along with Dr Jitendra Singh and Manoj Sinha. Senior Army officers will join the meeting along with other agencies who are engaged in relief and rescue operations.
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