Avalanche kills ITBP trooper, five missing in HP

A snow avalanche killed an Indo-Tibetan Border Force (ITBP) trooper while five others were missing near the international border in Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur district on Wednesday, officials said. The avalanche, triggered by fierce snow blizzards near Namgyal village bordering Tibet, buried at least six ITBP personnel. The disaster spot is some 350 km from the state capital.

The rescuers managed to retrieve one body, Deputy Commissioner Gopal Chand told reporters. "A search and rescue operation to locate the five missing jawans is on. It was snowed heavily in the area," he said.

Sources said the ITBP personnel were repairing the water pipeline when the calamity occurred.