By Poonam Sharma
The Himachal Pradesh flood disaster has taken the lives of many people and destroyed structures, severely impacting the lives of locals. Among the deceased is a family which was swept away in the dangerous flow of a river, leaving behind an 11-month-old girl, Nikita. The infant has lost her parents and grandmother in the tragic incident. A video of the girl playing with the SDM of the region has surfaced on social media. SDM Balh Smritika Negi said that since the story has come to light, many people have come forward to adopt the child. People are talking about the child on social media. The body of her father has been found, while a search is on for the mother and grandmother’s bodies. The disaster caused by heavy rains on June 30 and July 1 took the lives of many people and made many homeless. This heart-wrenching incident happened in Parwada village of the Seraj assembly constituency. Here, three people of the same family were swept away in the flow of water and the 11-month-old baby survived. The child was asleep when the incident took place. Ramesh’s house is along the drain. On the night of June 30, when the water level of the adjacent drain started rising due to heavy rain, Ramesh, his wife Radha and mother Purnu Devi went to the back side of the house to divert the flow of water. The girl was sleeping at home. Soon, the flood of water increased and the parents and grandmother were swept away in it. The house is completely safe and the baby girl was later rescued. Balh Smritika Negi, who is handling the additional charge of SDM Gohar, said that as soon as people came to know about this heart-wrenching incident, many people have requested her to adopt the girl through social media and by calling personally. Smritika Negi said that right now, the girl is being taken care of by her aunt Tara Devi. One body has been recovered and the search for two other bodies is going on. She said that the girl is very cute and whenever she visits the spot, she tries to spend time with her.