More Keralites stranded in Nepal floods begin journey back to India

More Keralites stranded in Nepal following devastating floods have begun returning to India, NORKA Roots said. Of 52 people who contacted its help desk, 45 have been confirmed safe, while authorities are working to trace seven others, including foreign nationals

Thiruvananthapuram: More Keralites who were stranded following the devastating flood in Nepal have started travelling back to India, NORKA Roots said on Sunday. Forty-five of the 52 people who contacted the NORKA Roots help desk following the floods in Nepal have been confirmed safe, while efforts are on to trace the remaining seven, the agency said.

NORKA Roots is a Kerala government agency that coordinates overseas affairs and welfare services for non-resident Keralites. The agency, in a statement on Sunday, said a 23-member group that had gone on the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage, 19 of them Keralites, reached Kathmandu around 12.30 am on Sunday and is preparing to return home.

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The group was caught in the floods while staying at Darchula, the base camp for the Kailash pilgrimage, and was subsequently taken to a camp through Kothari, the agency said.

A six-member team of doctors led by Dr Rekha Nair is also among those returning from Nepal, NORKA Roots said. The team, which completed the Kailash pilgrimage, is travelling towards India and is expected to reach Kathmandu this evening.

Authorities said the members are travelling safely. The other members of the 23-member group are British citizens with family roots in Kerala, NORKA Roots said. Another 44-member group that had travelled to Kathmandu on a tour through a travel agency has returned to India and is currently in Gorakhpur.

The group left Gorakhpur by bus for Bengaluru and is expected to reach the city around 8.30 pm on Sunday. From Bengaluru, they will travel by bus to Kozhikode and are expected to reach there on Monday morning, August 31, the agency said.

Of the 52 people who contacted the NORKA Roots helpline following the flood situation, 45 have been confirmed safe. They are currently safe in Nepal and other parts of India and are taking steps to return home, it said. Of them, 16 people had returned to Kerala on Saturday.

“Seven people are yet to be traced. Four of them are Australian citizens, one is a British citizen, and another is a US citizen. Their details have been handed over to the Ministry of External Affairs,” the statement said.

NORKA Roots said arrangements have been made for those arriving in India from Nepal to travel to Kerala, following directions from the Chief Minister’s Office. Another 31-member group from Kerala that was stranded in Nepal reached the state on Sunday.