21 trekkers, porters rescued from high Himalayan areas in Uttarkashi: Officials

A total of 21 trekkers and porters were safely evacuated on Tuesday from the Kalindi Pass, Jogin-I Peak and Satopanth Peak base areas amid snowfall and adverse weather in the higher reaches of Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district, according to the district administration.

Eight trekkers and porters from the Kalindi Pass area were airlifted to the Harsil helipad, while another eight trekkers and porters were airlifted from the Jogin-I Peak area. A helicopter safely brought five other trekkers and porters to Harsil from the Satopanth Peak base camp. While rescue operations at Kalindi Pass and Jogin-I Peak have completed, operations are still underway at the Satopanth Peak base camp.

All rescued individuals underwent a health check in Harsil.

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Three Army porters were also rescued from the Vasuki Tal area and brought to Harsil by helicopter.

On Monday, officials said choppers evacuated a total of 40 stranded trekkers-29 from the Auden’s Col Pass base camp and 11 from the Kalindi Pass base camp—to safer locations.

Uttarkashi district magistrate Prashant Arya said a total of 136 people including mountaineers, trekkers and support staff were present in high-altitude areas in the district. “Out of these, 89 were part of mountaineering expeditions, and the remaining were high-altitude trekkers,” he said.

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“On Monday, 40 members of a high-altitude adventure expedition in the Kalindi Pass Base and Audin Col Base areas were safely rescued. A total of 21 people were safely rescued on Tuesday,” he said.

“The administration is closely monitoring the rescue operation through the Smart Control Room and ensuring continuous coordination among all teams involved. Our priority is to safely evacuate every trekker and porter from the affected high-altitude areas. All necessary arrangements have been made at Harsil and other transit points,” Arya said.