33 tourists, locals stranded in Chamba's Saach Pass avalanche rescued

In a late-night operation, emergency workers in Chamba rescued 33 persons, including tourists and local, who were stranded due to an avalanche at Saach Pass, the mountainous pass which connects tribal Pangi with district headquarters.

District Disaster Management Authority officials said that about 8:30pm on Tuesday they received information from the SDM Pangi and Police Control Room at Bairagarh that about 40-50 people were stranded at Saach Pass after an avalanche.

Taking swift action, the Chamba district administration immediately launched a search and rescue operation, deploying teams from the police, Home Guards and other concerned departments. With the help of locals, the rescue teams had so far rescued 33 people. However, rescue teams are continuing the operation to find if any person is still stranded.

The district administration has appealed to the public to avoid traveling through Saach Pass until an official advisory is issued. Citizens have also been urged to rely only on official sources for updates regarding weather and road conditions.

The high-altitude pass, situated at 4,414 meters, had only recently reopened on May 26 after remaining closed for nearly seven months during winter.

Since its reopening, this is the second time the pass has been blocked due to adverse weather conditions. It was earlier closed last Saturday due to snowfall and reopened the following day. However, fresh snowfall on June 3 again rendered the route impassable.

SDM Pangi Pangi, Raman Gharsangi, who is also officiating as Resident Commissioner, said that all tourists and locals stranded on the pass due to sudden weather changes were safely rescued. He added that the PWD has been directed to begin restoration work at the earliest and necessary machinery has been deployed on site.

For now, the pass remains closed to all kinds of vehicular traffic. The road will only be reopened after a complete inspection and once the PWD issues a road fitness certificate, ensuring it is safe for travel.

Saach Pass, located in Pir-Panjal range of Himalaya Mountains, is a crucial link between Chamba and tribal valley of Pangi.

It not only significantly reduces travel time and distance between Pangi’s subdivisional headquarters Killar and Chamba to 172 km, compared to the arduous detour of over 650 km via Manali or Jammu and Kashmir during the winter closure.

The Pass has also emerged as a major tourist destination in last few years and is frequented by adventure loving tourists from the neighbouring states during summers when it opens for traffic.