Patiala man stranded in river in Manikaran valley rescued

Our Correspondent

Kullu, January 2

A police team, assisted by Streamline Adventure Mountain Search & Rescue managing director Yograj, was able to rescue a tourist from Patiala who fell into the Parbati river near the Galu bridge in the Manikaran valley today. Kullu SP Gaurav Singh said Gurwinder Singh (32) had slipped and fallen into the river and had somehow gotten stranded on a rock. He said on receiving information, the police rushed to the spot and rescued him.

He is the fourth tourist who fell into the Parbati river in the last one week.

Earlier, Prashant Sharma (30) of Bihar was washed away near Choj on December 26 and his body was recovered on December 28. Abhishek (27) of Meerut was washed away on the same day near the Galu bridge and his body was traced on December 31. Moksh (10) from Noida, who drowned near Chanal Behad on December 30, is still untraced.

The administration and the police have installed warning boards at various places along the river, but many times tourists ignore these boards due to which mishaps occur. There are many areas along roads, where rivers are easily approachable. The mining mafia, too, create new roads on riverbeds, which prove to be risky for tourists.

On June 8, 2014, 24 engineering students from Hyderabad were washed away into the Beas near Thalaut in Mandi. After this incident, the Himachal Pradesh High Court had directed the government to plug illegal routes. Many such routes were dismantled but new ones keep popping up with the passage of time.

Residents said such incidents could be reduced with the channelisation of the Beas. The plan to channelise the Beas from Manali to Aut has been hanging fire for long.