Rudraprayag, September 30 (TNA) Five members of a trekking group, including two personnel of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), have gone missing on the Kedarnath–Vasuki Tal–Audin Col route in Uttarakhand, officials said.
The group set out from the Kedarnath–Vasuki Tal trek to travel via Audin Col null. null with the trekkers nullafter they entered the high-altitude route. The missing trekkers have been identified as Amit Farswan and Naveen Rawat, both from the 40th PAC battalion; Pravesh Chauhan, a forest ranger from Uttarkashi; Vivek, a resident of Jaggi Bagwan; and Sanjay Singh Rawat, associated with the Animal Husbandry Department in Kedarnath.
Search Operation Underway
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Forest Department have launched a search operation along the trek route. A helicopter search was also initiated with the assistance of the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA). However, the aerial operation had to be suspended because of poor visibility and adverse weather conditions in the high-altitude region.
Officials said the helicopter search would resume once weather conditions improve, while ground teams are continuing their efforts to locate the missing trekkers. The incident comes amid difficult weather conditions in the region, with rain and snowfall affecting movement along several high-altitude trekking and pilgrimage routes. Rescue teams have recently evacuated stranded trekkers and pilgrims from parts of the Kedarnath region.