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PM offers
condolences
New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday expressed deep sorrow at the loss of lives in the powerful earthquake and offered India’s assistance to China to meet the situation. India stands ready to offer any assistance that may be needed at this difficult time,” Singh said in a letter to his Chinese counterpart Wen
Jiabao. Noting that people of India share the grief of their brethren in China, Singh expressed confidence that the resilient people of China would overcome this grievous loss. |
Beijing, May 13
The toll from the quake to hit China in three decades crossed 12,000 today and may go up further with thousands remaining buried under rubble or missing and army and rescuers racing against time to reach remote towns and villages devastated by the disaster.
Thousands of Chinese troops and medical teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected Sichuan province. The provincial seismological bureau said more than 1,180 aftershocks up to magnitude six on the Richter scale had been recorded as of 5 am today.
QUAKE AFTERMATH: A rescue worker searches for victims in the debris of a building in Dujiangyan on Monday.
— Reuters photo
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State media reported that the toll now exceeds 12,000 in Sichuan province alone.
At least 10,000 persons remained buried in Mianzhu city in the province while 3,629 persons had been confirmed dead and 18,645 were still buried under debris in Mianyang city.
The official Xinhua News Agency said there was serious damage to the buildings and roads in Mianyang and that water and gas supplies had been cut off.
Premier Wen Jiabao, who flew to Sichuan last evening, said the situation in the quake-hit area was worse than previously feared.
“The situation is worse than we previously estimated and we need more people here to help,” Wen said at the disaster relief headquarters in Dujiangyan, 100 km from the quake’s epicentre.
— PTI
