35 IIT Roorkee students among 45 missing in Lahul Spiti

It is reported that the students had gone to Hamta Pass in Kullu for trekking but have not returned.

Trucks make way through a submerged road in Mandi. (ANI photo)

New Delhi: 45 people - including a group of 35 students from IIT Roorkee - have been reported missing in Himachal Pradesh's Lahul Spiti even as heavy showers continue to batter most parts of the state.

News agency ANI reported that as of Monday, 45 persons were reported missing in Lahul Spiti. Among them is a group of IIT students. Rajvir Singh, father of one of the students missing, was quoted as saying that his son Ankit had gone trekking to Hamta Pass in Kullu and were scheduled to return to Manali. He says he has not heard from him.

Himachal Pradesh: 45 ppl including 35 IIT Roorkee students are missing in Lahul Spiti. Rajvir Singh, father of one of the students Ankit Bhati, said that they had gone for trekking to Hamta trekking pass in Kullu & were supposed to return to Manali, but now they've lost contact — ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2018

Himachal Pradesh: A group of 8 people, comprising a woman from Brunei Sanjida Tuba, a man from The Netherlands Abby Lim&6 Indian nationals Priyanka Vora, Payal Desai, Dipika, Divya Aggarwal, Abhinav Chandel&Ashok have gone missing from Lahaul-Spiti where they were going on a trip — ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2018

In another incident, a car was washed away in Manali with the status of all five passengers unknown at the time of filing this report.

Landslides have been reported in several parts of the state with many roads getting blocked. Rivers in the state are flowing at danger levels with authorities on high alert. Locals and tourists are being advised to exercise caution.