Punjab Newsline | Kathamandu

The death toll from the devastating floods triggered by the Bhote Koshi River in Nepal has risen to 177, while more than 800 people remain missing, according to an update issued by Nepal Police.

As of 10 a.m. Thursday, authorities had recovered 177 bodies from several districts along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli river systems, including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Chitwan, Gorkha, Tanahun, Nawalparasi East and Nawalparasi West. Most of the bodies were recovered from Chitwan in Nepal’s southern plains.

According to an Al Jazeera report citing the Nepal government, relief and disaster management teams have located 100 Indian nationals and 25 Chinese workers who had earlier been reported missing.

In a social media post, Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah said the Nepal Army conducted a rescue operation on Thursday morning in Timure, one of the worst-hit areas. The operation safely evacuated 95 Nepali citizens and 21 Indian nationals from the flood-affected region.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said that as of 11 a.m. Thursday, 826 people could not be contacted. Among them were 579 tourists, although the authority did not clarify whether the figure included foreign tourists, domestic tourists or both.

Authorities also reported that 48 Nepal Army personnel, 28 Nepal Police personnel, 13 Armed Police Force personnel and 162 other people from Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts remained unaccounted for.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Office said Prime Minister Shah visited flood-hit areas of Bidur Municipality in Nuwakot district on Thursday morning.

During the visit, Shah and the Infrastructure Development Minister are expected to assess the damage caused by the floods and hold discussions with local officials, security agencies and elected representatives on relief, rehabilitation and restoration of disrupted infrastructure.

Prime Minister’s Office said Shah is also expected to issue necessary directions to speed up relief operations in all affected areas and accelerate the reconstruction of damaged infrastructure.