Telugu pilgrims stucked in Nepal,return to Hyderabad safely

A batch of 36 Telugu-speaking pilgrims who were stranded in stormy weather in Nepal during the Mansarovar yatra earlier this week, returned to the city on Friday.They were part of a 60-strong group of pilgrims on the yatra who were held up in Hilsa in the Simikot region of Nepal. Most of the pilgrims are from AP.

After the weather cleared, the Nepal government made special arrangements to ferry the pilgrims to Nepalgunj in helicopters, and flew them to India on 15 special flights.One of these special flights, carrying the pilgrims from the Telugu states, first halted at Lucknow and then flew to Hyderabad. The expenses were borne by the state. From the airport, the pilgrims travelled by road to their homes.

Speaking to this newspaper, one of the pilgrims said, “The travel agencies whom we had booked did not respond to the crisis. Army helicotpers transported close to 400 stranded pilgrims. The Nepal government made arrangements for 15 flights.”

Septuagenarian dies during Amarnath climb

A 70-year-old pilgrim from Andhra Pradesh died during the Amarnath Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Friday. Officials said T. Ratnam from West Godavari district had died at a spot about 80 km away the Amaranth shrine. She reportedly died due to lack of oxygen. Authorities told this newspaper that efforts were being made to bring the body to her native town.