28 dead, 170 remain missing 2 days after Indian glacier disaster

The death count in the Uttarakhand glacier disaster rose to 28 today with the recovery of two more bodies from Chamoli district, reports our New Delhi correspondent quoting officials of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).

The two more bodies were recovered from the debris at Raini village.

Around 170 people are still missing after Sunday's incident, according to the latest data.

Meanwhile, rescuers are braving sub-zero temperature to rescue nearly 30 workers trapped inside a slush-filled tunnel near a power project.

The workers are reportedly trapped in a 12-foot-high and about 2.5-km-long tunnel.

A senior official, however, said the rescuers have not been able to make any contact with those stuck inside but they are hopeful of "signs of life".

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat told reporters that the priority was to get to those trapped inside the tunnel and save as many lives as possible.

Relief is also being distributed by helicopters among residents of more than a dozen villages with a total population of around 2,500, cut off due to the washing away of a bridge in snow-water avalanche at Malari, officials said.