Heavy snowfall in higher areas of Arunachal, BRO rescues 70 tourists

NEW DELHI: Around 70 people were rescued by the Border Roads Organization on Friday after the heavy snowfall hit the Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, a defence spokesperson said. "Heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of Tawang District since 22 February 2024 has resulted in disruption of traffic and closure of roads. BRO has gone beyond their mandate of keeping the roads open for traffic to carry out a rescue operation to evacuate approximately 70 tourists and locals stranded at the Sela Pass," said a press release issued by the BRO.The incident took place when some vehicles got stranded at the Pass on the night of February 22/23 and the BRO mobilised its men and equipment to rescue them.The team braved out the chilling cold with temperatures going below -10 degree celsius to save precious lives throughout the night and were able to move them to safety by Friday morning, the spokesperson said.BRO's Project Vartak has deployed men and personnel round-the-clock at not only Sela Pass, but other important roads in the region as well to keep it accessible for traffic at all times, the spokesperson said.(With inputs from agencies)