- 1 week ago
Flash floods in Nepal have disrupted communication networks and severed key road links, leaving over 280 Indian nationals untraceable and scores stranded, including pilgrims traveling for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. Multiple southern and eastern Indian states—including Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh—have initiated emergency relief operations, deploying cabinet ministers and senior officials to Delhi and Nepal while establishing dedicated helpline numbers for anxious families. The Ministry of External Affairs, alongside local embassies and disaster management authorities, is coordinating rescue operations, logistics, and exit routes through Tibet to facilitate safe repatriation. Simultaneously, political discussions have surfaced in Tamil Nadu following statements by TVK leaders projecting party founder Vijay as a future prime ministerial candidate. DMK leaders criticized the projection, emphasizing the need to focus on local governance commitments. The political commentary aligns with findings from the India Today Mood of the Nation survey, which highlighted Vijay's standing in prime ministerial preferences and sparked debate among political analysts regarding future election dynamics and potential alliance strategies.
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00:04Hello, Vanakkum and welcome. You're watching India Today's SoSouth, the one-stop shop where we bring you all the updates
00:10about South India only here on India Today.
00:14And I'm joined by my colleagues from southern part of India, Apoorva Jaichandran from Tamil Nadu, Shibimol will be joining
00:20us shortly from Kerala and so will Abdul Bashir from Telangana.
00:24Our first story that's coming in is from the devastating tragedy that's coming in from Nepal where several Indians still
00:31remain stranded.
00:32What we're learning is that as per the latest update, 290 Indians still remain untraceable.
00:38Particularly from Tamil Nadu, there were 103 Tamilians who had travelled from Tamil Nadu to Nepal but at the moment
00:4621 of those Tamilians have been brought back.
00:49Meanwhile, 290 of Indians particularly are still untraceable and among the missing and stranded include 86 from Tamil Nadu and
00:59Puducheri and 7 from Andhra Pradesh.
01:01Meanwhile, 53 people from Kerala are stranded, 13 plus from Karnataka and 41 from Andhra Pradesh are also still stranded.
01:09The families back home are still very anxious. They are saying that they have not been able to speak directly
01:16with their families.
01:17So their request from their respective state governments is to make sure that their families, that they get one chance
01:23to speak to their families who are still stranded in Nepal.
01:26From Tamil Nadu, a team headed by Adhavarjuna and his cabinet set of colleagues are already there in Nepal to
01:33sort of coordinate a smooth transitioning of sorts efforts to bring back and repatriate those Indians and Tamilians who are
01:40stranded in Nepal.
01:41I want to go across to my colleague, Apoorva Jaichandran who is coming in from Tamil Nadu. Apoorva, what do
01:48we know about the efforts that, but before Apoorva joins us, we have a series of reactions that's coming in
01:57on this devastating tragedy that has happened in Nepal. Take a look.
02:03I'm not sure.
02:29I'm going to travel.
02:45Thank you so much.
03:01I am not going to go to the city.
03:02I am not going to go to the city.
03:10What is your situation?
03:12Where are you?
03:14Are you safe?
03:15And do you have to come back?
03:18On the road we have to go to the road,
03:23that will be the same road.
03:24For the road we have to go to the city,
03:27we have to go to the city,
03:29we have to go to the city,
03:29and we have to go to the city.
03:34We will go to the city as a city,
03:39and we will go to the city and go to the city,
03:41and go to the city.
03:44After that, we are very long.
03:50We are at the return of the journey.
03:54I have to cross the 29th of my group.
04:04When the border was closed, we had to clear customs and cross the border to Nepal.
04:29I have to wait till China declares the exit route.
04:35We are taking care of all of us.
04:48So, those people will tell you that you have to go on the exit route.
04:53Then, after coming to Kathmandu, you have to get some help from the Indian Embassy.
05:00How many members do you have in this group?
05:02I have 44 members in this group.
05:06So, former DRDO Chairman Satish Reddy is in this group?
05:10I have come with you.
05:13Few celebrities have come with you.
05:17Who are you with in this group?
05:20Some people have come with the industry, some people have come with the builders.
05:25And Satish Reddy has come with me.
05:27That is it.
05:31It's truly heart wrenching what's happening in Nepal.
05:34Our hearts go out to the families who are stuck there.
05:37Thoughts and prayers with the families who are stranded in Nepal.
05:40I am joined by two of my colleagues from southern India.
05:43Apoorva Jaichandran from Tamil Nadu and Abdul Bashir from Telangana.
05:47Apoorva, to you first.
05:48What efforts are taken by the Tamil Nadu government to make sure that those Tamilians who are stranded there are
05:53returned back?
05:54Minister Adhavarjana is there with Raj Mohan and Vinod Kumar as well in Delhi's Tamil Nadu house to sort of
06:01ensure smooth repatriation.
06:03What are you picking up?
06:10Well, in fact, it's not just, you know, Minister Adhavarjana as well as Raj Mohan.
06:14Two other ministers are also all of these ministers have been sent from Tamil Nadu after a special consultation meet
06:21with Chief Minister Vijay to Delhi.
06:23They are currently in Delhi, all the four ministers, and they are monitoring and ensuring that there is a smooth
06:28back and forth between the centre and the state coordination in terms of bringing back the stranded Tamilians back to
06:36Chennai as well as to their respective hometowns.
06:38From Chennai, from Tamil Nadu and Puducheri, as of now, what we are learning from the numbers is across over
06:4457 persons, including three from Puducheri, have been stranded in across various parts of Nepal and Tibet as well with
06:52the Kailash Yatra that had taken place there.
06:56And the Chief Minister has also instructed a special IAS officer to go forth to Nepal, wherein they will go
07:02ahead and monitor the rescue and relief measures from the flood site as well.
07:07So, all of these measures that are being taken by the Tamil Nadu government, not only that, yesterday in the
07:14special assembly session that had convened in the Tamil Nadu assembly, we saw several leaders, including the leader of opposition
07:20Udenindi Stalin, also going ahead and questioning what were the relief and rescue operations that the Chief Minister Vijay and
07:28the TVK government has planned to take,
07:30following which there has been a special meeting that the Chief Minister convened with senior officials and has set specific
07:37instructions that has been given to each of the ministers as well as the special IAS officer as well to
07:43go forth and see the rescue and relief measures that will be taken.
07:46One special officer who has been sent to Nepal and four of the ministers from Tamil Nadu cabinet who have
07:52gone to Delhi right now at the TN house and they are monitoring and coordinating what can be the best
07:58possible measures that can be taken by the Tamil Nadu government in coordination with the embassy in China, Tibet as
08:05well as India to go ahead and see that they can bring back the Tamilians safely back to Tamil Nadu.
08:35Thank you very much.
08:45Thank you very much.
09:27Thank you very much.
09:31Thank you very much.
10:13Thank you very much.
10:29Thank you very much.
11:11Thank you very much.
11:15Thank you very much.
11:22Abdul for that elaborate reportage.
11:25I also want to bring in my colleague, Shibhi, how many people from Kerala actually travelled to Nepal and what
11:34efforts is the Kerala government now taking to bring back those who are stranded?
11:40Well, Anika, what we know, Anika, what we know is that as of now, there are 53 people who are
11:44stranded from Kerala and Nepal.
11:46There is another group of 36 who are currently safe.
11:49They have been, you know, the government has been devastated.
12:19from kerala uh we need a more you know we need more clarity and confirmation regarding it and
12:24the difficulty has been tracing these people because there's no way they're able to establish
12:28any contact they came to this conclusion 53 after receiving multiple calls at cm's office and chief
12:33secretary's office and also at norka roots uh you know uh from relatives and family members
12:38you know inquiring about their whereabouts so that's how the number 53 has been uh this has
12:44been uh you know confirmed by the norka roots uh and they've been trying to contact yesterday also
12:49the norka roots uh secretary was saying that the network is really poor that they're not able to
12:54establish their contact but we're assuming that they're all safe at this point uh you know one
12:59of the usually uh norka roots is the department for non-resident keralites so usually they have a data
13:04they have a database they have been operating in kerala since malayalese are working across the
13:08world malayalese presence is established across the world they have a proper data but this one
13:12situation they have been finding a little difficult to establish data because of uh you know the no
13:17visa procedure and everything in nepal uh and that's one difficulty they have been facing in
13:21identifying the you know the identifying the people stranded there they have a number but they've not
13:26been able to establish who exactly are these 53 people they're constantly in touch with the
13:31external affairs ministry and also the embassy is what uh the sources are telling but yeah the focus
13:36right now remains on these 53 people as of now
13:43and as more than 280 indians still remain stranded in nepal feeling helpless there are their families
13:50here back home in india who are anxious waiting for some sort of ray of hope some news about their
13:57loved ones who are there in nepal it is the devastating humanitarian crisis take a look at this report
14:04in the high himalayas a wall of ice rock and water has torn through a valley
14:11rewriting its landscape and leaving hundreds missing
14:15what began as a distant crumble in tibet's glacial headwaters turned within minutes into a devastating crisis
14:21for nepal and now a moment of deep anxiety for india
14:27over 280 indians including several kailash mansur over pilgrims are missing while scores more remain
14:33stranded after flash floods swept through central nepal unleashing destruction and cutting off entire
14:38areas at least seven people from andhra pradesh were reported missing four have since then been
14:44traced safe although they remain stranded while efforts continue to locate the remaining
14:49among those stranded in nepal is a software engineer suhasini reddy from hyderabad who is based in
14:54australia suhasini was traveling as part of a kailash mansur over pilgrimage group and had left for
15:00nepal on the 19th of august her current whereabouts are unknown we tried to develop all kinds of contacts
15:08but unfortunately there is no communication all communication system and entire thing has washed
15:15away and we are worried worried in sense they vacated the hotel and from then we don't have any other
15:24communication we pray god save my sister and if we get information we never mind to travel where she
15:33is and we'll bring her back you have some exclusive pictures here you can see the APF team
15:43lagataar yeah per search operation chal raha unka or
15:48pataya jara hai ki narayan ghaat ke paas yaha peh
15:51teakriban 35 se bhi zyada joh lashe hai joh pani me teher rahi thi unko nikala gaya hai
16:06at least two people from kalaburgi in karnataka who was stranded amid the severe flooding have been
16:12rescued and moved to safety disaster management authorities have contacted them and gathered
16:17details of their location arrangements are now being made to bring them to delhi with accommodation
16:22being planned at karnataka bhavan if there is any information that you have about our people people
16:31from our state missing in nepal you inform us we will ensure that the right communication channels
16:41will be opened for their relatives and friends
16:46a team of 33 people from kerala traveling through nepal has confirmed that they are safe and away
16:52from the worsted areas from bengal over 30 people are missing at least seven from maharashtra and
16:58several others from up farmer leader rakish tickets who had traveled to nepal by road with associates
17:04was among those from uttar pradesh who were stuck in pokhra from bengal there are 30 tourists and two
17:10travel agents who are missing they were part of a kailash mansurva group traveling with the kolkata
17:15based chalo jai club the group also includes an indian expatriate based in the united states
17:22their last contact came around 8 am on wednesday just before the floods struck
17:28right now we can see this is the chalo jai travel club where they have opened one war room and
17:34they
17:34were working to recover to rescue those people from nepal and right now they are working heart and soul
17:43to save the lives as we are informed by them is 30 tourists and two managers those who have
17:53accompanied the 30 tourists for kailash mansurva yatra and right now is totally missing and untraceable
18:01among those still untraceable are durgapur couple arindam and mosumi ganguli they were traveling
18:07towards sayab rubesi as part of the kailash mansurva pilgrimage the group had left on the 21st of august
18:14but since the floods hit there has been no word from the couple their last known contact was with their
18:20daughter the mea has been consistently monitoring the whereabouts of every indian stranded in nepal and now
18:26across india families are holding on to one hope that the silence is only a communication blackout
18:32and that their loved ones are alive safe and waiting to be rescued
18:36with a report india today
18:44i'm joined by my colleague apurva jaychandran apurva the main question is what's the latest update on
18:51the number of people hailing from andhra who have been repatriated back
19:00well in fact from andhra pradesh there are across 41 people so far who have been identified who have
19:06been stranded in nepal there is rescue operations that are underway in fact we do know luckily there
19:12is a group of 28 persons pilgrims who have traveled from tirupati and nearby districts there they are
19:18safe in one uh they've all been put up in one hotel near kathmandu just a little bit away from
19:24the
19:25devastation site there they are all all the 28 of them are safe however of the 41 people there are
19:30seven persons including persons from guntur vijaywada nearby districts krishna nearby districts here
19:36who are still missing luckily three persons uh who have been identified as a part of the isha
19:42uh foundation they are safe is what andhra pradesh government is monitoring uh this entire uh
19:48monitoring is closely being led by rtgs minister their nara location in fact uh special teams have
19:55been set up at the ap bhavan in delhi as well as here in andhra pradesh in amrawathi capital as
20:00well
20:00where there is monitoring going on 41 people who have been identified out of which unfortunately seven
20:06persons uh you know there they are still missing these seven out of 41 are still missing however
20:12the andhra pradesh government uh uh is closely monitoring the situation with embassies there
20:18in tibet and in indian embassies in tibet and china as well chief minister chandra babu naidu has also
20:23gone ahead and taken stock of the situation and asked for the officials to go ahead and ensure that
20:29there is close coordination between the embassies both in tibet and china as well as from nepal where
20:35these standard passengers are there and enable that they can be rescued and brought back either to delhi or
20:41back to uh you know andhra pradesh safely as well all measures that are being taken to ensure that
20:46these uh these stranded passengers that the pilgrims that had gone for the kailasha yatra they are being
20:51provided all kinds of measures that is needed for them be it food medicines or any other uh available
20:57resources that can be provided to them all of these measures are also being taken up helpline numbers
21:02that have also been given out by the andhra pradesh government at ap house in delhi as well to
21:07coordinate uh you know the kind of any panic calls that are being received by the ap government there
21:12at the center as well as at the state to ensure that there is a smooth coordination ensuring that
21:19none of the pilgrims from andhra pradesh are left behind and they are brought back safely searching
21:24that is still going on search operations still going on for the seven but as of now the number
21:29for andhra pradesh stands at 41 with seven missing all right thank you very much for those updates but
21:39in tamil nadu there is a major political tsunami that's sort of gearing up the chorus here in tamil
21:46nadu for chief minister of vijay to be the next prime minister of india is only growing louder first it
21:52was minister adhav arjuna right in the assembly rooting for vijay to become the next prime minister
21:57and then it was agriculture minister vinod kumar and then it was minister sangotian and then now it's
22:03also the finance minister maria wilson who are sort of sort of selling you know sending out those
22:08feelers that chief minister vijay is going to become the next prime minister of india and you know adding
22:13to this is in tutukudi where posters have been put up saying today's cm uh vijay is going to be
22:20tomorrow's pm of india take a look at this report
22:27so
29:22is saying is first fulfill your duties and election promises as CM and then think about
29:27becoming the next Prime Minister. Former DMK Minister Anubil Mahesh has hit out at Vijay
29:32saying that before elections what Vijay promised was 6 LPG cylinders and now it has been reduced
29:39to just 3 LPG cylinders. So what sort of an election promise is this is what DMK's former
29:45Minister Anubil Mahesh has stated. This is the breaking news that we are bringing for you.
29:49The DMK is saying that first fulfill your election promises as a Chief Minister and then harbor
29:56your ambitions as a Prime Minister. The DMK has also stated that Vijay has now newly put
30:02conditions on his election promises after that he has become a Chief Minister. So directly
30:06implying that let him first be a good Chief Minister, let him prove himself first as a Chief Minister
30:12and then let him harbor ambitions of becoming the next Prime Minister of India. Let's listen
30:17to this bike that's coming in from Anubil Mahesh.
30:21As for months, these accomplishments will cost you a sure that piace about the second
30:27point.
30:27As I mentioned earlier, once they leave 10 inverse runs, let's go on down below which
30:36means they have to come down below.
30:37But this is supposed to be a clear seat at theessä of anguish with a camera.
30:38If there is usually anmonth which says Piquetanyial Park or the next plane he may be
30:48and but nobody else is the thing won't touch anything you want.
30:49I can reveal it at the top of theійs.
30:51You will see this.
30:55How many people will be seeing this in a year of 2014?
30:59I will see that there are even 1.000.00 to the трiddich.
31:04Even if you will see this in a couple of days,
31:05that you can find it on your date.
31:07And if you go to an average and you will see it 7.000.00.
31:12So I will tell you,
31:27I am joined by my colleague, Apoorva Jaichandran.
31:29Apoorva, the DMK, says that Chief Minister has now put on new conditions after becoming
31:34Chief Minister.
31:35Before elections, as part of his Annapurini Super 6 schemes, he had promised six free cylinders,
31:39but now it has just been reduced to three cylinders.
31:43What more has the DMK got to say about Vijay's ambitions about becoming the next Prime Minister?
31:52Well, if you can see the DMK's former Minister there, Anbal Mahesh, going ahead and taking
31:57a jibe at Chief Minister Vijay.
31:58In fact, he is talking about these particular schemes that were announced in Tamil Nadu Assembly
32:03by none other than Chief Minister Vijay, wherein he has talked about from January 2027.
32:08Fongal, we will be giving three free cylinders per year.
32:13But however, after this announcement that was made by the Chief Minister, you saw the kind
32:18of conditions that had come up, wherein they said that only people who have an annual income
32:22below 2.5 lakhs, you know, only those people will be eligible for these three free cylinders.
32:27So, all of these conditions that are coming up with these promises, failed promises, you know,
32:32let Chief Minister Vijay go ahead and fulfill his duties, fulfill the promises he has promised to the public.
32:38First, as a Chief Minister, then let's talk about him being, you know, called as the next Prime Minister,
32:43even the President of USA.
32:44That's the kind of statement that has been made by Anbal Mahesh.
32:48In fact, this was an exclusive that we got, wherein Anbal Mahesh has taken a direct hit at,
32:53you know, Chief Minister Vijay.
32:56This comes right after India Today's Moor of the Nation survey, wherein it showed a lot of important
33:02leaders' names, prominent leaders' names, being a part of, you know, the Prime Minister candidate,
33:08including that of Chief Minister Vijay.
33:12The question is whether the Congress is benefiting from this anti-incumbency that may be setting in
33:18in some states, in some states, I repeat, best suited to be next PM.
33:23Narendra Modi, 49%, Rahul Gandhi, 27%, since you mentioned Rahul Gandhi, sir.
33:30Joseph Vijay has come in as the new entrant.
33:34I don't think in India Today, Moor of the Nation had even factored him till the other day at 9%.
33:39Now, majority or large number may be from Tamil Nadu.
33:42Abhijin Dheepke, Abhijin Dheepke, Kokruj Janda Party, 1.3%.
33:48And Arvin Kejriwal, 1.2%.
33:50Now, this is, of course, a direct question, best suited to be next PM.
33:54Rahul Gandhi's performance as LOP.
33:57Outstanding was 24%, Jan 2026.
34:00August 2026 remains almost the same, 23%.
34:03Good then was 20%, now they say 25%.
34:06Add the two, there is a markup, but not significant, about 4% in all.
34:11Average, 18% there, 18%.
34:13Best suited to lead, India block.
34:16Rahul Gandhi is at 29%.
34:19See, Joseph Vijay is coming at 12%.
34:22This is first day, first show, big hit.
34:26Mamata Banerjee is at 9%.
34:28Best suited to lead Congress.
34:31Rahul Gandhi, 41%.
34:33Priyanka Gandhi, 7%.
34:34Let's pull out the numbers of best suited to be the next Prime Minister.
34:38And this is the cautionary tale which has been built in.
34:41See, Joseph Vijay, 9%.
34:43Abhijin Dheepke, 1.3%.
34:44Over 10% of the people here, Rajdeep.
34:47And who defines this gentry?
34:49It is the Gen Z.
34:50If you remember, C. Joseph Vijay was the spark which led to the entire...
34:54How much did we debate about the Gen Z propelling C. Joseph Vijay to be the Chief Minister?
34:58Break the data down of C. Joseph Vijay.
35:00Because I was looking at the micro detailing of your data.
35:03It really, the popularity doesn't really come from Tamil Nadu, it comes from the North East.
35:07So, there is a section, Rajdeep, that is looking at new alternatives.
35:12No, no, but that's...
35:13You see, again, that's not...
35:14See, Joseph Vijay is not a contender in the North East.
35:16The point I'm making...
35:17But he's popular.
35:18No, the bigger point is...
35:19He can be popular.
35:19The point is, if you have to win an election, you have to start getting a large chunk of the
35:24anti-BJP vote gravitating to 149 individuals.
35:26And is he a 24-7 political leader if Rahul Gandhi is not a 24-7 political leader?
35:30I just want to make a quick point before you wind up.
35:32Just one point.
35:33Firstly, Vijay replaces, in some senses, Kejriwal. Because earlier, Kejriwal is...
35:38So, that is...
35:38That has moved over there.
35:40Now, as you rightly said, they have to attract... Rahul Gandhi has to attract all those who are fleeing the
35:46BJP if they are fleeing that.
35:48I think Maria makes a very good point.
35:50The BJP is highly resilient.
35:52It hasn't collapsed in a way.
35:53Don't ever imagine that through these polls.
35:56It has just dipped a bit.
35:57It's still very strong where it is.
36:01And with that, we come to the end of India Today's So South.
36:04I want to thank my colleagues Abdul Bashir, Shibhimol and Apoorva Jaichandran for joining us on this show.
36:10Tossing it back to my colleague Suvesha Sawant who is joining us from Delhi Studio.
36:14I don't know.
36:16Oh yes, and we cut across to breaking news...
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