The number of people killed in the flash flood caused by heavy rain close to the Amarnath cave shrine increased to 16 on Saturday as the search efforts went on nonstop despite concerns that many more people may still be buried under the rubble. According to officials, 25 injured persons were taken to hospitals after the flash flood and landslides, while 15,000 stranded pilgrims were relocated to Pinkerton's lower base camp.


On Friday afternoon, people combed through tents and communal kitchens.

An army spokesperson

 said that for the search and rescue effort, mountain rescue teams and lookout patrols equipped with cutting-edge tools and sniffer dogs have been sent out. "Air rescue operations began early Saturday morning, and Army helicopters removed six pilgrims. An official stated that the military medical personnel are receiving patients and casualties at the enlarger helipad for further evacuation.

The air wing of the BSF has sent a Mi-17 helicopter. The government of Jammu and Kashmir has also used cutting-edge light helicopters for rescue missions. In Delhi, a spokeswoman for the Border Security Force (BSF) stated, "Sixteen bodies have been moved to Battal." According to a force spokesperson, the ITBP has increased the size of its route opening and protection parties from the bottom portion of the holy cave up to Pinkerton.

Vijay Kumar, the additional director general in charge of the Kashmir range of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, arrived at the sacred cave shrine on Saturday morning to oversee the rescue efforts being carried out by security personnel and the National Disaster Response Force. He claimed that as the administration double-checked the pilgrims' data to determine the precise number of casualties, the rescuers were cleaning the rubble in search of survivors. Due to the possibility of terrorism, each pilgrim has been given a Radio Frequency Identification card this time..

T Raja Singh, a BJP MLA for Telangana, was one of those who managed to flee the disaster. The congressman and his family chose to take ponies on their return trip because the weather started to turn bad after they arrived to Amarnath via helicopter. "We noticed a sudden deterioration in the weather. The helicopter service would likewise be cancelled in that case. So we made the decision to ride ponies down the slopes. Raja Singh told reporters on Friday night, "I could see the showers on the hills, and then several tents got swept away in the floods.

After the catastrophe, the yearly pilgrimage, which had started on June 30, was put on hold. A decision about its resume would be made after the rescue efforts are complete, a senior government official said. "The majority of the pilgrims who were left stranded by the flash flood at the holy cave shrine region have been moved to Pinkerton. Till 3.38 am, the evacuation was still in progress. There isn't a pilgrim remaining on the path. Up until this point, around 15,000 people have been relocated securely, according to an ITBP representative.

Nine people who had suffered critical flood injuries were treated by paramilitary force medical personnel, according to a BSF spokesperson. They have been relocated to the Neelgrath base camp, which is at a lower elevation. To help the pilgrims arriving from the subterranean shrine, a detachment of BSF personnel has been stationed at the Neelgrath helipad. According to him, 15 patients were airlifted to Baltal on Saturday morning after spending the night in the BSF camp that was put up in Panjtarni with about 150 pilgrims, he added. At the Nilkant camp in Sonamarg, the injured were receiving medical care. Helpline numbers have been established in Anantnag in South Kashmir, Srinagar, and Delhi for relatives of those who have been killed, and an integrated command centre has been established under the supervision of the divisional commissioner of Kashmir.of pilgrims to learn about the health of their relatives. A colonel-led infantry battalion, Quick Reaction Teams, a second company from the Rashtriya Rifles Sector, and a team from the special forces had arrived at the shrine with specialised rescue equipment to carry out the operation, according to an Army official.