Large scale rescue efforts are under way in Jammu on Tuesday to rescue lakhs of people trapped in flood-ravaged areas, with IAF choppers and transport aircraft undertaking non-stop sorties overnight to carry men and relief material to submerged parts. As most of the areas remain inaccessible due to cutting off of road and communication network, reports are pouring in about massive devastation in the remote areas of Jammu region. Several villages have been wiped out completely due to flood fury as well as landslides and the death toll is likely to rise as there was no trace of the people living in these areas. The most affected are Udhampur, Reasi, Rajouri and Poonch districts where the losses run into thousands of crores. Half-a-dozen villages in Pancheri area of Udhampur have been razed to ground with no traces of houses and the inmates. The houses have been converted into debris and hundreds of people missing. Forty houses of village Saddal in Pancheri have been wrecked and at least 38 people killed due to Landslides. The death toll in Udhampur district alone is more than sixty. Reasi district has also been worst affected as scores of people went missing in the interiors of different tehsils of the district and the road links totally disconnected due to washing away of road stretches. The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained closed for vehicular traffic for the 6th consecutive day today due to extensive damage caused to the road at various places between Ramsu to Jawahar Tunnel. The train traffic from Jammu to Katra has not been restored despite hectic efforts and there were reports of damage to railway track at various places. However, Army, Indian Air Force (IAF), National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) launched the relief and rescue operation on war footing and they are trying to reach out the affected people at every nook and corner of the region. The Army’s relief operations are continuing in full swing with the troops working round the clock to evacuate the people under distress and also provide relief to the population in terms of water, food, relief material and medical assistance. There were no reports of fresh causalities today but search for those missing in different areas was on. Reports from Udhampur said that that no more bodies were recovered from Saddal village in Panjar Panchayat of Pancheri on the third day of rescue operation, today. As the village is at-least one kilometer away from the road and the road stretch to reach the village is completely damaged due to landslides, the administration failed to press any JCB at the spot. The big boulders and 8-10 high debris is creating hurdles in the operation with huge debris of razed houses scattered all around. Even the army and NDRF teams failed to retrieve the bodies as more debris is moving downwards from the hillock creating risk to the rescue teams. Romesh Singh Sarpanch Panjar of the area said that the death toll is much more as the number of people buried under the rubble is more than fifty. He alleged that no help has been provided by the state administration while the relatives and locals of the deceased are carrying the operation themselves. He said that some limbs of the deceased were recovered from the debris. Singh claimed that more than 1000 people have been affected in the entire Panchayat with damage to hundreds of houses. The people are rendered shelterless and they have migrated to the houses of their relatives. No tents, eatables or any other kind of assistance have been provided to them by the administration. The road and mobile network have been snapped from last seven days and they are cut off from the rest of the nation. According to reports 4-5 villages have been completely wiped out in flood fury and landslides in Pancheri with toll loss of at-least 150 houses. Similar was the condition of other villages of Ramnagar and Chenani tehsils also where the administration failed to reach for help. People of Dhanas village in Chenani staged protest against not opening of Chenani-Patangarh road. They claimed that their 200 kanals agricultural lands have been washed away and apricot trees, maize crop has been flattened. They alleged that no aid, tents or blankets have been provided to them by the administration yet. In view of the emergent situations arising out of recent incessant rains/floods resulting into large scale damages/ havoc, the district administration Udhampur with intent to provide some succor to the affected families has opened Donors Disaster Relief Fund Account at J&K Bank limited, Main Branch , Udhampur bearing Account number 0028040100031495 (IFSC Code - JAKA0UDMPUR). Any person/ Organization willing to help the affected families can donate contributions by depositing the same directly into the aforesaid Bank Account number. Moreover, the contributions (Cash/Kind) can also be made through the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur. Keeping in view the quick response to provide relief, the DDC directed concerned Patwaris of revenue department to prepare detail report and cases of loss of lives and damaged houses due to recent incessant rains in the area and instructed the concerned officers to take immediate action wherever required so that the people do not suffer more. The DDC also informed that Control Rooms have been set up at Udhampur headquarter where officers and officials are monitoring the situation to take appropriate precautionary measures. Reports from Reasi said that the road connectivity in the district remain shattered on sixth consecutive day today. Reasi-Pouni road remain closed due to landslides and washing away of road patches. Puccah houses also suffered damage due to landslides and several kutchas houses were razed to ground in nature’s worst ever fury in last sixty years. Hundreds of vehicles were trapped and damaged at different stretches of link roads while no power, water supply has been restores till date. They are cut off from the rest of region due to no mobile connectivity while the food items are being sold at exorbitant rates. Hundres of kanals of land have been eroded while the fields were converted into mud hills. Though the JCBs were pressed into service yet these failed to restore the road connectivity due to washing away of road stretches. All the development works carried in Siar Baba area were destroyed by nature’s fury and the parks, view pints, rooms and a temple suffered extensive damage. Sungri, Angrala and Chasana areas were totally cut off from the rest of district. Meanwhile army dogs recover bodies buried under mudslide in Reasi. Defence spokesman said that on receipt of a specific request for search of bodies buried under a mudslide at village Babbar, district Reasi, Talwara Rashtriya Rifles Battalion, under Uniform Force, a Quick Reaction Team was dispatched on priority comprising of six Army personnel and two ‘Search And Rescue’ Great Swiss Mountain dogs which specialises in the operations involving search and rescue of humans buried under mud and snow. An area of around 100 by 150 meters was searched by Army dogs named Blazer and Bobby alongwith the dog handlers. The dogs after a detailed search confirmed the presence of the bodies buried under the mud. The indicated area was dug upto 5 feet resulting in recovery two dead bodies, one elderly woman aged 70 years and a child aged four years. Reports from Banihal said that Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained closed for vehicular traffic for the 6th consecutive day today due to extensive damage caused to the road at various places at Ramsu .Hundreds of vehicles, including those carrying passengers, were stranded on the highway due to the closure, they said. National highway 44 completely eroded into nallah Bichleri at Ramsu and Gangru area of Ramban district. “Today we pressed men and machines (Border Roads Organisation) in the morning and cleared some portion. We have called huge and heavy Machinery to clear national highway.” Replying to a question he told that the reconstruction of new road at these point Nachalana to Ramsu it will take time 3 to 5 days. “We are trying hard and we try to make road with lesser time. Today we reconstruct a huge area if this speed remain on force we will green road within three days. But highway is motorable from Batote to Ramsu and Ramsu to Nachallana passengers are walking on foot and Nachallana to Banihal.” Divisional Commissioner Jammu Shantmanu along with IGP Jammu Rajesh Kumar, Deputy Commissioner Jammu Ajeet Kumar Sahu and Additional Commissioner Rehana Batul informed the public at large and relatives of those in particular who are stranded in Kashmir division that apart from Susheel Attri General Manager JKTDC, (Mob number 9419212447), Naresh Kumar Secretary JMC (Mob number 9419146662) and Vinod Behnal, Deputy Director Urban Local Bodies, Jammu (Mob number 9419127343) shall also be available in the Relief Cell at JKTDC office at TRC, Jammu round the clock, to do the needful. He was briefing the media persons in a press conference convened here today. It was also informed that SMSs would be received at cell number 9419212447 and other numbers already notified and telephone calls would also be received at cell number 94191-46662 and cell number 94191-27343. Defence spokesman said that the relief camps were established in school buildings and Panchayat Garh at Pargwal and Gakhrial. More than 2500 civilians were provided food, shelter by the Army. In addition, relief camps were also established at Nai Basti and Mandal to provide food and shelter for more than 1000 civilians. The medical teams with medicines were inducted immediately to ensure all types of medical help was provided in the affected areas. Two medical camps each at Pargwal and Mandal areas has been established which have lady doctors in addition to male doctors are operating round the clock. Army engineers and experts under the dedicated team of Chenab Brigade have also started restoring minor roads, culverts and communication lines. The Army and civil administration with the help of local population worked jointly to maximize efforts to rescue marooned people and other relief activities Army authorities have also inducted more than ton and a half of food including cooked food and ready to eat food packages as well as about 30 Tons of bottled water daily with the assistance of the Air Force. Not to be left behind, the Army Wives Welfare Organisation (AWWA) has also dispatched relief stores today PRO (Defence) Jammu, Lt Col Manish Mehta said. This is the seventh day of the rescue operation the Indian Army has employed more than 220 columns and evacuated more than 30000 people to safer places PRO (Defence) Jammu, Lt Col Manish Mehta said. The unpardoning weather could not deter the spirit of the CONDORS, the Helicopter Squadron of Jammu Base and unit lived up to his motto 'Count on Us'. The Squadron pilots flown mission in heavy rain, poor visibility and low cloud conditions causing crew to fly close to the terrain to locate and recover the survivors. The herculean task continued with increased pace on 06 September and 07 September 2014 and still going on, wherein till now 572 people have been rescued and 22 Tons of relief load with an air effort of 27 hours has been dropped to grief struck population in various inaccessible parts of Jammu. Armed Forces and NDRF so far rescued 47227 persons in different regions of J&K. Army has deployed 220 columns of its personnel for rescue and relief operations, in which 135 columns deployed in Srinagar region and 85 columns in Jammu region. They have distributed 7,200 blankets and 210 tents. The Army also distributed 42,000 litres of water, 600 kilograms of biscuit, 7 tonnes baby food and 1000 food packets in the flood-affected areas. Additional water bottles are being airlifted from Chandigarh and Delhi. In order to meet the shortage of food in the flood-affected area, cooked food including biscuits are being sent from Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad on a large scale. In an endeavor to provide speedy medical aid to the affected populace, 80 medical teams of the Armed Forces Medical Services have also swung into action. So far 451 sorties were undertaken by the helicopters and aircraft of Indian Air Force and 563 tonnes of relief materials are dropped by the Indian Air Force. Altogether 61 aircraft and helicopters have been pressed into action. 135 Army bauts and 148 NDRF’s inflatable boats are actively involved in the rescue operation. BSNL with the assistance of the Armed Forces is trying hard to restore its mobile services through satellite network and the telecom network at the earliest. Besides, Air Force communication equipment and a team from private telecom company are being airlifted from Delhi. To restore the road connectivity, five task forces of Border Roads Organisation, which include 5700 personnel, have been pressed into service. As of now, they have restored the road connectivity between Batote and Kishtwar. Work between Kishtwar and Sinthan Pass is in progress and Jammu to KM 172 is open for light vehicular traffic. Fifteen engineering task force teams along with boats and other lifesaving equipment have already reached the flood affected areas to supplement the rescue operation. The situation is being continuously monitored and progress of the events are updated at the office of the HQ IDS in New Delhi. About four lakh people were still stranded and desperate for help on Tuesday in flood-ravaged Kashmir valley where heavy rains have eased to help scale up the massive multi-agency rescue and relief efforts in which 47,227 people have so far been safely evacuated.