Retired schoolteacher of Basirhat Town School Anukul Poddar
I have travelled to many places but I have never experienced such a terrifying natural disaster. My Nepal trip was meant to be a dream journey to Kailash-Mansarovar.
My former colleague from Basirhat Town School, Swapan Mondal, and his wife had also boarded the Mithila Express from Howrah to Raxaul on Aug 21, travelling with a group arranged by a different tour operator. Because of landslides, last year, too, we had travelled to Himachal Pradesh, where we were stranded for five days. As we set out towards Mansarovar, our driver suddenly turned the vehicle back after receiving news of a flash flood near the Nepal-China border, shortly before Kerung. But it was nothing compared to the horror we witnessed in Nepal.
That quick decision saved our lives, and today we have finally returned home.
The Mondals were expected to reach the Kerung immigration centre around 9.30 am on Wednesday while our vehicle was scheduled to arrive around 10.30 am. Unfortunately, after the disaster, we lost contact with the couple. We feel relieved but, at the same time, we are deeply pained on hearing news of people who lost their lives. Our only prayer now is that Swapan and his wife, along with all the other missing tourists, return home safely. (Retired schoolteacher of Basirhat Town School Anukul Poddar spoke to Sanjib Chakraborty ) You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kolkata | Silver Rate in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata | Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Petrol Price in Kolkata | Diesel Price in Kolkata | CNG Price in Kolkata | LPG Price in Kolkata Stay updated with the latest Kolkata news.
Swapan and I had travelled together to several places in the past. This time, we travelled separately from Kathmandu towards Kerung. The Mondals reached the centre on time and even took photographs there. Swapan later sent me one of those photographs. Our vehicle turned back just 40m-50m away from the point where the disaster occurred. We could see what appeared like a huge mass rushing down the gorge and hear a roar, but we had no idea of the catastrophe unfolding at Kerung. Our driver immediately took us back towards Kathmandu. A few minutes later, we saw local residents and schoolchildren running uphill in panic, screaming and crying. Only after returning to our hotel in Kathmandu did we realise how narrowly we had escaped death. Had we been a little early, there would have been no chance of our returning home. Download the TOI App.