Pune: Disasters come without prior notice, they say. While the people of the Malin village were asleep on early Wednesday morning, they were caught unaware by the landslide which buried the entire village and most importantly, their hopes.
Hours after the massive landslide claimed at least 25 lives, making 150 other stranded, Home minister Rajnath Singh reached the site and took an overview of the ongoing rescue operations at Malin village which was buried. (Also Read:Â At least 15 dead, over 160 feared trapped in Pune landslide)
Accompanied by Vinod Tawde, leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra legislative council, and other officials, Rajnath Singh travelled to the disaster site.
On the second consecutive day, rescue teams – comprising the National Disaster Response Force, Maharashtra Disaster Response Force, police, villagers and political activists – are facing a lot of problems as the rains continue to lash the village.
Earlier on Wednesday evening, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, assembly Speaker Dilip Walse-Patil and Ministers Harshavardhan Patil and Madhukarrao Pichad visited the site and directed the rescue operations.
A 300-strong team, comprising the National Disaster Response Force, Maharashtra Disaster Response Force braved inclement weather and frantically searched for trapped people under stones, boulders and sticky mud.
Heavy monsoon rains have lashed the hills in the area for past few days, causing rocks and mud to loosen and tumble down on houses at Malin village, 80km from Pune. Authorities fear that the death toll could mount as most of the 67 houses in the village were buried under a 25 feet pile of rocks and mud.
According to district administration officials, 21 bodies have been recovered so far.
Heavy rain, which has lashed the picturesque region over the past four days, continued to hamper relief operations the whole day and prevented rescuers from approaching the accident site as, due to the flowing water, the mud kept shifting.
District officials said people in around half a dozen other villages in the hilly neighbourhood are being evacuated as a precautionary measure.