Overview
- The group of 13 left Gangotri on October 27 and were due back on October 29 when a snow slide and glacier movement blocked the trail beyond Bhoj Kharak.
- Rescue teams from the NDRF, SDRF, the forest department and the trekking agency were deployed from October 31 to reach the stranded party.
- Aerial reconnaissance flights from Harsil have so far found no clear signs of the missing trekkers or their tents during repeated searches.
- Four support staff — three porters and a cook — were located safe near Kachi Dhang while officials report that one of the eight missing has a head injury.
- Operations have entered a third day with intermittent suspensions because of heavy snowfall and unstable glacier conditions, and officials are seeking helicopter evacuation while specialised mountaineering teams stand by to resume ground searches when it is safe.