Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said that with nearly 70 people still missing after the devastating cloudburst in Kishtwar, the chances of finding them alive are very slim.
He said the government’s immediate focus is now on retrieving the bodies so that families can perform the last rites.
“Every passing day makes it impossible to recover the missing alive. Our efforts will now be to recover as many bodies as possible and hand them over to the families,” Omar told reporters in Srinagar as per news agency KINS.
The Chief Minister assured that all issues raised by the local people will be looked into and necessary decisions will be taken. “We will ensure every possible assistance to the affected families,” he said.
Omar confirmed that the Kishtwar tragedy was caused by a cloudburst and announced that an expert team will soon be formed to identify vulnerable areas across Jammu and Kashmir. “We will study what preventive measures can be taken so that such incidents cause minimum damage in the future,” he said, recalling that a similar disaster had struck Ramban earlier but with fewer human losses.
On political matters, Omar cautioned against distorting history for political gains. “No government lasts forever. If today’s government writes against one group, what will stop the next regime from targeting another It is better to keep history away from politics,” he said.
Responding to opposition criticism over the National Conference’s signature campaign for restoration of statehood, Omar said it was natural for the opposition to oppose. “If they don’t want us to reach out to people, that’s their stand. Earlier they asked why we were not involving people, now they ask why we are. Opposition’s job is to oppose, and our job is to work. Let them do their work,” he added.(KINS)
