NAGPUR, Aug 2026 : As many as 102 pilgrims from Nagpur who were stranded in Kathmandu following devastating flash floods in Nepal safely returned to the city by train early Sunday, bringing relief to their families, officials said.
The pilgrims, along with four others from different parts of Vidarbha, had travelled to Nepal on August 19 to visit the Pashupatinath temple and other religious sites. They remained in Kathmandu until August 27, a day after flash floods struck areas along the Nepal-Tibet border, severely disrupting transport and leaving several communities cut off.
While four pilgrims from Vidarbha returned to Nagpur by air on Saturday, the remaining 102 reached Nagpur Railway Station at around 4.30 am on Sunday.
Nagpur BJP president Dayashankar Tiwari was present at the railway station to welcome the returning pilgrims and check on their well-being.
One of the pilgrims, Yogesh Gawande, said the group considered itself fortunate to have made it back to India safely amid the devastation caused by the floods. The disaster has claimed at least 675 lives and left nearly 2,400 people missing, according to officials.
Another pilgrim expressed gratitude to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for helping facilitate their return and coordinating efforts to bring the stranded travellers home.
According to the Maharashtra Chief Minister’s Office, Fadnavis remained in contact with Nepalese Member of Parliament Sandeep Rana regarding arrangements for the pilgrims’ safe evacuation.
The journey back to India involved several stages because road and transport links from Kathmandu had been disrupted by the floods. A pilgrim said the group travelled by bus from Kathmandu to Janakpur in Bihar on August 28. They reached Danapur the following day before travelling onward to Patna, where they boarded a train bound for Nagpur.
Pandit Sridhar Tripathi, who was leading the pilgrim group, said one of the travellers, 72-year-old Nirmala Pandey, remained hospitalised in Kathmandu after suffering a heart attack.
Tripathi said Pandey’s son, who is from Nagpur, had travelled to Kathmandu and was staying with her while she received medical treatment.
The safe return of the pilgrims brought considerable relief to relatives who had been anxious about their whereabouts following the floods and disruption of transport services.
Earlier on Saturday, four other pilgrims from Vidarbha, including three women, had returned safely to Nagpur. The four were Indira Chaudhary, 65, Sulochna Khapre of Wardha, and Deepak Pande and Varsha Upadhyay of Hinganghat.
They were part of the same pilgrimage group that had travelled to Nepal to visit the Pashupatinath temple and other religious destinations.
The four pilgrims travelled from Kathmandu to Delhi by flight on August 28 and subsequently boarded the Kerala Express to reach Nagpur on Saturday morning.
The return of the pilgrims follows efforts by authorities to assist Indian nationals affected by the severe flooding in Nepal. With transport routes disrupted and several areas facing continuing risks, officials have been coordinating evacuation and relief measures to ensure stranded travellers can return home safely.
