Mudslide engulfs Indian village, at least four dead and over 50 missing

Published August 5, 2025
Houses are partially buried by a mudslide, amid flash floods, in Dharali, Uttarakhand, India, August 5. — Reuters
Houses are partially buried by a mudslide, amid flash floods, in Dharali, Uttarakhand, India, August 5. — Reuters

Surging floodwaters and a torrent of mud swept through a village in the northern Indian Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, killing at least four people while more than 50 others were missing, authorities and local TV channels said on Tuesday.

Teams from the army and disaster response forces had reached the area, local authorities said, with workers trying to rescue people trapped under debris and sludge.

TV news channels showed floodwaters and mud surging down a mountain and crashing into the village, sweeping away houses and roads as people ran for their lives.

The mudslide cleaved through Dharali village, burying some houses, according to a video update shared by the state chief minister’s office.

Four people were killed and many more had been rescued so far, Uttarkashi district administrator Prashant Arya told local media.

“A massive mudslide struck Dharali village in the Kheer Gad area near Harsil, triggering a sudden flow of debris and water through the settlement,” the Central Command of the Indian Army said in a post on X.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to those affected and said teams were making every attempt to provide assistance.

Uttarakhand is prone to floods and landslides, which some experts blame on climate change.

At least 200 people were killed in 2021, when flash floods swept away two hydroelectric projects in the state.

There are about 10,000 glaciers in the Indian Himalayas, and many are receding due to the warming climate.

Opinion

Editorial

Unquiet Lebanon
Updated 21 Jun, 2026

Unquiet Lebanon

Either Israel must silence its guns and withdraw from all of Lebanon, or face isolation and boycott from the international community.
Mothers at risk
21 Jun, 2026

Mothers at risk

FOR years, efforts to reduce maternal deaths have focused heavily on postpartum haemorrhage — the severe bleeding...
Political budget
21 Jun, 2026

Political budget

THE KP budget does not read like a document of a province getting its fiscal house in order. Revenue is projected at...
Pakistan’s moment
Updated 20 Jun, 2026

Pakistan’s moment

Pakistan’s diplomats are second to none, and if these states seek to engage this country constructively, a new modus vivendi for the subcontinent can be reached.
Menacing water plans
20 Jun, 2026

Menacing water plans

IN April last year, India suspended the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty, which contains no provision allowing it to...
World Refugee Day
20 Jun, 2026

World Refugee Day

WORLD Refugee Day, observed today around the globe, marks 75 years since the adoption of the 1951 convention ...