300 tourists safe, some getting back home

PUNE: A day after a massive quake hit Nepal and worries about tourists from the state began to mount, the district administration on Sunday said they were able to collect information of about 300 tourists who had travelled to Nepal from Pune, Satara, Kolhapur, Solapur and Sangli districts and they were all safe.
A disaster management cell started functioning on Saturday soon after reports about the quake came in.
"We have been collating information about tourists since Saturday. So far, officials have been able to get updates on the whereabouts of 300 people who travelled to Nepal recently. Of these, about 159 are from Pune district, which is more than 50%. Among the remaining tourists, 94 are from Sangli, 41 from Kolhapur, four from Satara and two persons from Solapur district. Most were in Nepal visiting places of tourist interest," officials said.
Officials said their information about tourists has been provided by tours and travel companies and relatives. The administration asked travel companies to furnish details about tourists and also provide updates on the steps they have taken in the last two days to establish contact with them.
The companies have informed that tourists are returning from Nepal either by road, train or flight, depending on what is available. Some travel companies have said they were making arrangements for their return.
Meanwhile, officials said they were checking if more people from Pune and other districts are stranded after the earthquake. Officials said besides their initiatives there is a general appeal to tour organizers and relatives of tourists to contact the administration if they have not been able get any updates about relatives and friends who are in Nepal and have not contacted them.
Besides tourists, about six people from Satara were on a trek to the Everest base camp. Contacts have been established and they are safe in Nepal, authorities said on Sunday. The control room has been set up on the premises of the district collector's office at Council Hall.
NDRF sends Netra for rescue ops
The Pune unit of National disaster Response Force (NDRF) on Sunday sent a small team of four officers along with Netra UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to help the ongoing rescue operations in earthquake-hit Nepal. Officials said they were in a state of readiness to join rescue works.
The NDRF has been using Netra at rescue operations during natural disasters. It had carried out surveillance in Malin after the landslide, last year. It was used in rescue operations in Uttarakhand near Kedarnath after a massive landslide.
Netra is a battery operated high-tech surveillance instrument that can fly in the air and transmits visuals to the base station. The remote-controlled equipment helps conduct a survey of areas difficult to access during a disaster.
Officials on Sunday said they have sent a team along with equipment, but a decision would be taken by NDRF authorities in-charge of the rescue operations, about their use.
Condolence meet
Over 150 people from Nepal, residing in the city, on Sunday, gathered for a condolence meet. Dilipsingh Vishwakarma of the Nepali Social Organization of India, said the meet was conducted to pay tribute and discuss what can be done to help survivors. He said, "There is a feeling of fear among people because of the earthquake. We will meet next Sunday to chalk out a plan on help and rescue," he said.
IMA calls on members
The Indian Medical Association's headquarters in New Delhi has called on its members to volunteer their services in Nepal. "All branches of IMA, including the Pune chapter, have been asked to register the names of members who are willing to render their services in Nepal. We have been told that relief and rescue work is going to take a few more days and doctors' services will be needed. Accordingly, doctors in Pune can register their names," said paediatrician Jayant Navrange of IMA, Pune who has already registered with the IMA headquarters.