The massive cloudburst in Kishtwar district has killed at least 60 people and injured more than 100, officials said.
The flash flood triggered by the cloudburst struck the remote mountain village of Chisoti in Kishtwar on Thursday.
Authorities have so far identified 30 of the bodies retrieved, the officials said.
Earlier, Omar in his I-Day speech said at least 60 people have been killed and more than 100 injured in the cloudburst at Kishtwar village.
Among the dead include the pilgrims, locals and two Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel.
To identify the deceased, the authorities shared their pictures through a WhatsApp group with the affected families, resulting in the identification of 30 of them.
More than 160 people have so far been rescued and the condition of 38 of them is said to be serious.
The officials said the death toll could go up as more people are believed to be trapped.
Sources said there are 72 missing people officially while the number could be higher.
The administration has set up a control room-cum-help desk in Paddar, about 15 km from Chositi, to assist people and pilgrims.
Since the tragedy struck, the help desk has received scores of distress calls, the officials said, adding that the authorities are trying to trace 69 people reported missing by their families at the help desk.
“We have shared the pictures of the bodies with them,” an official said.
There are two villages ahead of the cloudburst-hit belt — Machail and Hamori — where hundreds of people are stranded, the officials said, adding that their mobile phone batteries have been exhausted due to the snapping of the power supply to the belt following the disaster.
A large number of people had gathered there for the pilgrimage that began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5. The 8.5-km trek to the 9,500-foot shrine begins from Chisoti, which is located about 90 km from Kishtwar town. The yatra remained suspended for the second day on Friday.
The floods accompanied by mudslides and debris flows, buried houses, shops and vehicles.
At least 16 residential houses and government buildings, three temples, four water mills and a 30-metre span bridge, besides more than a dozen vehicles, were damaged in the flash floods in Chisoti and downstream, the officials said.
The flash floods also swept away a security camp and several vehicles parked at the bus stand.
A langar (community kitchen) set up for the devotees bore the brunt of the cloudburst, which caused flash floods and washed away several structures, including shops and a security outpost.
Many vehicles at the bus stand, the starting point for the foot journey to the Himalayan temple of Machail Mata, were severely damaged by floodwaters and mud.
A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team reached Chisoti today.
“The NDRF team is joining the operation currently underway in the village. They reached Gulabgarh late in the night,” Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar Pankaj Sharma said.
He said choppers could not be operated due to bad weather, so the NDRF team came by road from Udhampur.
Two more teams are on their way and will be joining the operation, the officials said.
The Army has also inducted one more column to intensify the search-and-rescue operations, they said. Rashtriya Rifles troops have joined the operation.
Five columns of 60 personnel each, totalling 300 troops, along with medical detachments of the White Knight Corps, are on the ground, working tirelessly in coordination with police, the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and civilian agencies to save lives and assist those in need.
Volunteer teams of Ababeel, with nine ambulances, reached the village and joined the operation on Thursday, said Adil, one of the members.
Another group, Hilal Volunteers, also joined in the rescue operation and ferried the injured to hospitals.
Despite rains, the rescue-and-relief operations resumed early on Friday after a night-long pause to look for survivors feared trapped under rubble and mud.
Several earth-movers requisitioned by the district administration joined the operation to move giant boulders, uprooted trees and electricity poles to speed up the rescue-and-relief operation, the officials said.
Videos showed torrents of muddy water, silt and rubble tearing through the steep slopes, destroying everything on the way. Houses folded over like a pack of cards, rocks came tumbling down, blocking roads and rescue paths.
Army, in close synergy with the Jammu and Kashmir Police, Civil Administration and State Disaster Response Force today launched an extensive search and rescue operation following a devastating cloudburst at Village Chisoti in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir.
Defence spokesman said that rescue columns from Indian Army were immediately mobilized to the affected site.
"Despite the treacherous terrain, rising water levels, and debris-laden flows, troops moved with urgency to reach stranded civilians and provided lifesaving assistance," he said.
He said the Army rescue teams, equipped with specialist gear and supported by vehicles and medical personnel, evacuated survivors to safer locations and provided immediate first aid.
Food, drinking water, blankets and emergency medical care were made available on the spot, he said, adding that search efforts are ongoing to locate the missing and engineering assets have been deployed to clear blocked approach routes to ensure uninterrupted relief operations.
The Health and medical education department has reinforced critical infrastructure to ensure optimal patient care in the wake of the tragedy.
A health department official said a team of specialist doctors from PGI-Chandigarh is slated to reach the Government Medical College (GMC) in Jammu to assist in medical care and bolster critical-care capabilities.
According to the official, critical health infrastructure has been reinforced at a sub-district hospital close to the cloudburst site, with an additional deployment of 13 doctors and 31 paramedics.
Senior officers of the department are stationed at Padder, overseeing rescue and medical operations, he said, adding that the district hospital at Kishtwar has been prepped up with the additional deployment of general and orthopaedic surgeons, and anaesthetists from the GMC in Doda.
Tertiary-care institutions have been put in a state of full readiness, the officials said, adding that a team comprising specialists has been readied at the GMC-Doda to manage the patients being referred from the Kishtwar district hospital.
The GMC-Jammu is in full operational readiness with 50 dedicated disaster beds, 20 ventilator beds and five operating theatres, another official said.