VIP visits to hampers relief op in U’Khand: Shinde

New Delhi: Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today advised VIPs not to visit rain-ravaged Uttarakhand saying such visits created difficulties in relief and rescue operations.

"We advise all VIPs not to visit Uttarakhand now. All agencies are engaged in relief and rescue efforts and such visits hamper their works," he said. Shinde`s advise came on a day when Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi was visiting the disaster-hit hill state. The Home Minister said if any VIP does not listen to the advise, he may not be given landing permission in Uttarakhand. A stream of VIPs has visited Uttarakhand in the wake of the natural disaster to oversee relief and rescue operations. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi have made aerial visit to the hill state, while Shinde himself, chief ministers Narendra Modi (Gujarat), Bhupinder Singh Hooda (Haryana), Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) and Prithviraj Chavan (Maharashtra) have visited the state in the last few days to review relief operations. Representatives of several other state governments too have toured Uttarakhand. PTI