41 Dead as Floods and Landslides Ravage J&K

Death toll climbs to 41 as shrine route landslide and flash floods devastate J&K; PM assures Centre's support.

- AJAY JANDYAL/TDG NETWORK

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the escalating flood and landslide crisis across the Union Territory, which has now claimed 41 lives. Of these, 34 deaths were reported from the massive landslide near the Vaishno Devi shrine in Reasi district, where rescue and relief operations continue in difficult conditions.

Officials said three more bodies were recovered on Wednesday, while one person was killed in Akhnoor, a BSF jawan died in a flash flood at Pargwal, another victim was reported in Lakhanpur, and four people lost their lives in Doda.

Abdullah, who toured several of the worst-hit areas along the banks of the Tawi River in Jammu, thanked the Prime Minister for assuring continued assistance from the Centre. "The scale of destruction is unprecedented, and we require urgent relief as well as long-term mitigation measures," he said, adding that the same bridge section damaged during the 2014 floods had again been washed away, raising questions about preparedness.