Between shrines and Chenab, families await word of 18 missing loved ones

Chisoti (Padder), Aug 18: On the sunny morning of August 10, a group of 18 pilgrims – men, women, and children – left Jammu district to embark on the Mata Machail Yatra in Padder, the last village along the sapphire-rich Himalayan ranges.

Their first halt was Gulabgarh, a town in Padder, from where they proceeded on August 11 toward Chisoti, a base camp along the Bhot Nalla, a tributary of the Chenab River.

From there, they crossed an under-construction bridge on foot and rode motorcycles for 5 km along a dirt road before trekking another 5 km to reach the shrine at Machail village.

They spent August 12 and 13 at the temple before beginning their return journey on August 14. That morning, the group reached Chisoti, unaware it would be their last stop.

Most of the group had gathered at Chisoti’s two temples – the Kali Mata and Nag Deva shrines – where local priests Bodh Raj and Dena Nath were leading bhajans and prayers.

Others were eating tea and maize bread at roadside stalls or sitting down to have lunch at the community kitchen when a sudden cloudburst triggered flash floods around noon.

The wall of water, carrying debris and boulders, tore through the camp in seconds.

Pilgrims and locals were swept away, as were the two priests.

Dena Nath’s body was found the same day, and Bodh Raj’s remains are missing.

“The entire group was washed away in the blink of an eye,” said Amit, a shopkeeper from Jammu who had set up a makeshift hotel at Chisoti.

Six of his relatives, including two women and four children aged seven, nine, 12, and 15, are still missing.

The body of one woman, Mamata Rani, was recovered downstream that afternoon, but her sister and two children remain untraced.

Happy Singh, 35, from Bari Brahmana, was among those combing through the makeshift camp set up by the Revenue Department in Chisoti.

With his cousin Balveer Singh, 30, he looked for his mother Santosh Devi and aunt Surashti Devi, who were among the missing.

Their children – Shagu Devi, daughter of Shawan of Muthi Domana; Sushma Devi, daughter of Sham Lal of Muthi Domana; and Sahil Sharma, son of Mohan Lal of Digyana – were also swept away.

“Their names weren’t on the list of deceased or injured,” Singh said, his voice breaking. “I had no choice but to register them as missing.”

Sudesh Kumari, the wife of Tilak Raj of Bari Brahmana, who had joined the group as a friend, is also missing.

Two members – Sahil Sharma, son of Dev Raj of Udhampur, and Sharda Devi, wife of Bidya Ram of Jammu – were later recovered from the Chenab.

But many others remain unaccounted for, including Vanisha Mehra, daughter of Rajesh Kumar of Jalandhar, and Shivani Kumari, daughter of late Bal Krishan Parshad from Uttar Pradesh.

“I came here the very first day,” Singh said, consoled by his cousin. “But I have given up all hope of recovering their bodies.”

EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS OF DISASTER

Amit, who witnessed the disaster, described the moment as “doomsday descending.”

“The weather was sunny when suddenly dark clouds gathered, followed by lightning and a loud bang,” he said. “Then came the roaring water, carrying trees, stones, and mud. People had no time to react.”

He said some 100 people survived by clinging to rocks, trees, or debris.

Others were buried under mounds of mud or swept into the Chenab.

Two children were miraculously rescued alive after eight and 24 hours.

Four CISF personnel camped on duty were also swept away.

Two bodies were recovered immediately, while the leg of a third was found trapped in the rocks of Bhot Nalla.

The fourth remains missing.

“Yesterday, six bodies were recovered. Today only one,” Amit said. “The Chenab is unforgiving. Once a week has passed, only dismembered parts may surface.”

Sawant Singh, 22, whose mother and sister were serving tea at their stall on the riverbank, also lost his house.

“The bodies of countless people drowned in the Chenab have never been recovered,” he said. “I have no hope of finding my mother and sister.”

RESCUE OPERATIONS AND MOUNTING DESPAIR

Ten relief camps have been set up across the Kishtwar district, where families have registered missing relatives.

Officials say 87 names have been recorded so far from Jammu, Udhampur, Reasi, Kathua, Samba, Rajouri, Poonch, Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban, and even Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.

Leader of Opposition and BJP MLA from Padder, Sunil Sharma, joined SDRF and NDRF personnel in search operations, even jumping into the river with rescuers to retrieve a body.

But villagers say the chances of recovery diminish with each passing day. “The Chenab is not like the Tawi in Jammu or the Lidder in Kashmir.

It runs with full force until it merges into the Indus in Pakistan,” said Amit. “Bodies vanish in its depths.”

PILGRIMAGE OF FAITH AND PERIL

The Machail Mata Yatra is among the most revered Hindu pilgrimages in Jammu and Kashmir, blending devotion with arduous travel. Rediscovered in 1981 by Thakur Kulveer Singh of Bhaderwah, the shrine gained prominence when he began the annual Chhadi Yatra in 1987. Since then, thousands trek each year from Chisoti to Machail village in Paddar.

The route demands resilience: pilgrims cross streams, traverse dirt roads on motorcycles, and trek rugged Himalayan terrain to glimpse the deity.

For the 18-member group, that sacred journey turned into tragedy, their chants silenced by the Chenab’s roar.