219 of 319 TN residents traced safe in Nepal floods; 100 remain untraced

At least 219 of the 319 Tamil Nadu residents identified as being in flood-hit Nepal have been traced and confirmed safe, while efforts are underway to locate the remaining 100, state minister A. Rajmohan said on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters at Chennai airport after returning from New Delhi, Rajmohan said those rescued were being brought back to Tamil Nadu in batches, depending on flight availability.

Thirty-three people are scheduled to reach Coimbatore from Delhi on Monday evening, while another six are expected to arrive in Chennai later that night. The government is hopeful that all those who have been traced and confirmed safe will return to the State by Monday night.

The Tamil Nadu government is coordinating with the Centre, the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian diplomatic officials and authorities in Nepal to trace those still unaccounted for and facilitate the evacuation of stranded residents.

Among those affected is a 57-member group that travelled through a Kumbakonam-based travel agency. Of them, 21 have been rescued and brought safely to Chennai, while efforts continue to trace the remaining 36.

The whereabouts of another 49 Tamil Nadu residents who travelled from Chromepet as part of the Mahadevi Yatra group are also yet to be established, according to the minister.

Rajmohan said another group of 150 Tamil Nadu residents had entered Kathmandu through the China border and was returning to India on different flights. A further 39 people had also been accounted for and confirmed safe.

Describing the floods as a disaster of international scale, the minister said the difficult terrain and extensive destruction had complicated rescue and identification efforts.

He said bodies and personal belongings could have been carried hundreds of kilometres from the areas initially affected, making it difficult to establish the whereabouts of missing travellers. Rescue teams are also recovering bodies from locations far from the original flood-hit areas, with authorities working to determine whether any of the deceased are from Tamil Nadu.

Military personnel and rescue agencies from both India and Nepal are involved in the ongoing operations. Damaged roads, disrupted communications and adverse weather conditions have further hampered access to several affected areas.

To coordinate the rescue and repatriation efforts, the Tamil Nadu government has set up a dedicated war room at Tamil Nadu House in New Delhi. The facility is collecting information from families and coordinating with the Union government and Nepalese authorities. Officials said thousands of calls had been received from anxious relatives seeking information about stranded residents.

A four-member ministerial team, including Rajmohan, had travelled to New Delhi to oversee coordination. Three ministers have since returned to Chennai, while minister for Non-Resident Tamils Welfare K. Thennarasu remains in Delhi to monitor the rescue operations and facilitate the return of those who have been traced.

The State government said its immediate priority is to establish contact with the remaining 100 people and ensure that everyone found safe is brought back to Tamil Nadu at the earliest.

With IANS inputs