BRTF men rescue 70 tourists stuck in Arunachal’s Sela Pass

GUWAHATI: Braving heavy snowfall and freezing cold, men of 42 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) evacuated about 70 tourists stranded at Sela Pass in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang district early Friday morning.
Defence PRO Lt Col Mahendra Rawat said heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of Tawang district since February 22 resulted in disruption of traffic and closure of roads. “The BRO has gone beyond its mandate of keeping the roads open for traffic to carrying out a rescue operation in order to evacuate approximately 70 tourists and locals stranded at the Sela Pass,” he added.
“The 42 BRTF of Project Vartak mobilised its men and equipment to rescue them. The team braved the chilling cold with temperatures going below -10 degrees Celsius to save precious lives throughout the night and were able to move them to safety by 4:30 am on February 23. Project Vartak has deployed men and personnel not only at Sela Pass but other important roads in the region as well to keep them accessible for traffic at all times,” the PRO said.