The Indian Army has reached the epicentre of the earthquake at Barpak village, near Lamjung in Gorkha district of Nepal, to set up a base there as part of the massive rescue and relief work being conducted under 'Operation Maitri'.
The Army engineering taskforce with earth-movers has also opened up a road from Kathmandu to Pokhara to ensure relief material and equipment can now be moved to the interiors by road instead of just the air route earlier.
"Barpak is the actual epicentre of the earthquake that rocked Nepal on Saturday, where we initially saw 150 bodies from helicopters. Our teams are gradually reaching inaccessible areas to open roads, clear bridges and rescue people, apart from setting up field hospitals, engineering taskforces and communication hubs," said a senior officer.
Working in close conjunction with its Nepalese counterpart as well as IAF and NDRF, the Indian Army is prepared for the long haul in the Himalayan country with which it shares a two-century-old connection through recruitment of the doughty Gorkha soldiers.
"We have around 28,000 Nepalese Gorkhas serving in the Indian Army, with another 125,000 retired ones in Nepal. They will be our eyes and ears in directing the relief operations," the officer said. Incidentally, Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag, who is in regular touch with his Nepalese counterpart, is a Gorkha Rifles officer.
While the main taskforce HQ has been established in Kathmandu under Major-General J S Sandhu, the sub-HQ is now fully operational at Barpak under Brigadier J Gamlin. Both officers are also from Gorkha Rifles.
"Four Army Dhruv advanced light helicopters and two Cheetah choppers are also being inducted into Pokhara for rescue and relief operations. We are ready to assist Nepal in whatever it wants. Hotlines have been set up between the two armies," said another officer.
