At least 60 people have lost their lives and dozens remain missing after devastating flash floods swept through Chositi village in Kishtwar district, Jammu and Kashmir. The disaster struck on Thursday when water mixed with debris and mud surged down from a hillside, hitting the remote village that serves as a stop for Hindu pilgrims visiting the Machail Mata shrine. Officials believe the flooding may have been caused by a cloudburst, though the meteorological department has yet to confirm. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, speaking at an Independence Day event in Srinagar, said over 100 people had been injured. Rescue operations are ongoing, with soldiers, police, and the National Disaster Response Force working under challenging conditions, equipped with only one earth mover to dig through rubble.
Survivors described scenes of chaos and terror as the floods struck without warning. Pilgrim Putul Devi, who came with 13 family members, has been reunited with only two; her husband and three children remain missing. “We had completed the darshan when suddenly there was a blast-like sound and everyone started running,” she told ANI, her voice heavy with grief. Sanjay Kumar, who was serving food at a community kitchen when the floods hit, recalled how the nearby drain suddenly overflowed with sludge, forcing hundreds of people to flee for their lives. He was briefly trapped under debris before being rescued, along with his son, by security forces.
In hospitals, the atmosphere remains tense as families desperately search for their loved ones. One man, holding a phone with his missing daughter’s photo, pleaded through tears, “Please find my daughter. I don’t want anything else.” Rescue teams fear that as many as 100–200 people may still be trapped under mud and rubble. The tragedy comes amid a period of extreme rainfall across northern India, with Uttarakhand also witnessing severe floods last week that submerged nearly half of Dharali village. Authorities are warning of further weather-related risks in the coming days.
