New Delhi has ramped up assistance to Kathmandu in the aftermath of last week's devastating floods, sending forensic teams, tunnel-rescue specialists and modular bridging equipment alongside dozens of tonnes of relief material.
A fourth Indian aircraft carrying 11 tonnes of aid touched down in Nepal on Sunday, taking the total relief supplied so far to 68.5 tonnes, the Ministry of External Affairs said, as per PTI.
Officials described the latest consignment as including a technical contingent for tunnel operations, search-and-rescue gear, a forensic team equipped for DNA analysis, and everyday relief items such as blankets, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, plastic sheeting and hygiene kits.
The forensic and tunnel-rescue support responds directly to conditions on the ground in Rasuwa district, where workers remain unaccounted for at hydropower sites near the Tibet border, including the Upper Trishuli-1 and Trishuli-3A projects.
An 11-member Indian team of doctors, paramedics and tunnel engineers, which reached Kathmandu on Friday, inspected flood-hit tunnel infrastructure in Nuwakot's Trishuli belt a day later and flew over the Chilime and Langtang areas to assess the terrain before joining rescue work, the embassy and Nepal's disaster management authority said.
On the ground, an 82-strong team pooled from the Nepal Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police has spent several nights clearing debris in an effort to reach anyone still trapped, though blocked entrances and poor weather have slowed progress. The Nepal Army has put the number of workers already pulled out of tunnel sites at 191.
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India's contribution to Nepal's identification effort comes as authorities there turn to outside forensic capacity for DNA testing on flood victims, PTI said.
On connectivity, 16 truckloads of components for a 230-foot single-lane Bailey bridge have already reached Nepal, with parts for seven additional bridges due shortly along with the crews needed to install them.
The push forms part of a broader request Nepal has made to both India and China for help erecting 42 such bridges, prized for how quickly they can be put up without heavy machinery, to reconnect areas cut off since flash floods tore through the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river valleys on Wednesday, destroying roads, bridges, homes and power infrastructure.
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