82 stranded tourists in Telangana forest rescued

Hyderabad, July 27: Eighty-two tourists, who were stranded in a forest Telangana's Mulugu district amid heavy rain, were rescued on Thursday, officials said. The tourists had gone to see the Mutyam Dhara waterfall and were stranded as overflowing water cut off the passage way on Wednesday.

They were rescued early Thursday morning by personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and district police.

Superintendent of Police Ghouse Alam said the joint rescue operation was launched after the Dial-100 helpline received a phone call from one of the touists, stating that they were stranded in the dense forest.

In a similar incident, some people are also stranded in Bhupalpalli amid heavy rains.

Director General of Police Anjani Kumar said police teams were trying to reach the critical areas.

“The SP and other officers are in touch with the stranded people. All are safe. Rescue and Relief operations are on the way,” the DGP tweeted.

"These are testing times for all of us, and the enthusiasm of Police Constable officers led by seniors is praiseworthy. Senior officers from Multi Zone, IG C. S. Reddy and IG Shahnawaz, are also in the field, guiding and coordinating with SPs and other departments."