In addition to the 54 people from 10 districts of Tamil Nadu and 3 from Puducherry who had gone on the pilgrimage, it has come to the notice of the government that a tour operator in Chennai had taken 49 pilgrims to Mansarovar, taking the total number of persons embarking on the pilgrimage to 106, he said.

"The state government is monitoring the rescue and status of pilgrims on an hourly basis, and currently steps are on to bring the 20 people who were rescued through Kathmandu," School Education Minister A Rajmohan told the Assembly, responding to a "call-attention" motion moved by the opposition parties on the subject.

Apart from 57, a Chennai-based travel agency took 49 pilgrims to Mansarovar yatra, and currently efforts were on to ascertain their travel plans and whereabouts, he added.

Over 130 Indians, including many pilgrims on Mansarovar Yatra, went missing and scores of others got stuck in Nepal after flash floods swept through its central districts, unleashing destruction and cutting off affected areas, according to officials in the neighbouring country.

Providing details on the tragic incident in Nepal involving the Tamil pilgrims on the Kailash yatra, Rajmohan said a glacier collapse in the upper reaches of a river in China caused a massive flash flood in the Bhotekoshi River at the Nepal-Tibet border, severely impacting areas including Rasuwa, Timure, and Syabrubesi.

A total of 384 passengers, including 291 foreigners and 93 from Nepal went on the pilgrimage and of them 75 were injured while 209 persons - 93 on land and 116 through air ambulance - were rescued. There was significant damage to 35 vehicular bridges, 45 suspension bridges, and approximately 40 kms of roads.

"Many groups, not one, had gone on the pilgrimage. The first group comprised 57 pilgrims - 54 from Tamil Nadu and 3 from Puducherry -were organised by Super Yatra Kumbakonam," the Minister said adding a vehicle carrying 20 of these pilgrims got stuck during the floods, but they were successfully evacuated to an Armed Police Force camp in the Timure area and are safe. Efforts are on to secure the remaining members.

It was later discovered that another group of 49 pilgrims organised by Mahadev Kailash Yatra, Chennai, is also in the region, and authorities are working to locate them.

The Nepal army, police, and private agencies are using helicopters and ground teams for rescue, search, and relief efforts. And for its part, the Tamil Nadu government has established a 24/7 control room in New Delhi (9289516712) and toll-free numbers (18003093793) for assistance, he said.

The minister emphasised that this disaster served as a "wake-up call" regarding climate change and the need for stricter adherence to sustainable development goals.