Days before he was to head to Kailash Mansarovar, Sai Prasad Somayajulu spent hours climbing up and down 14 flights of stairs to his apartment complex in Hyderabad. “He is an ardent Shiva Bhakt,” his nephew Praveen tells . “He wanted to make sure he could trek through the difficult terrain.”

The 60-year-old Canadian who moved to Hyderabad only two years ago is one of 16 NRIs from Telangana who have been missing since flash floods in Tibet and Nepal. The death toll in the disaster, triggered by an earthquake and an avalanche, stands at over 450, with hundreds still missing and rescue efforts ongoing.

According to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, some 288 had been reported missing – many of them pilgrims like Somayajulu. Back in Hyderabad, his family is worried. “The last contact with him was one hour before the floods hit. He was at the immigration office at the Nepal-China border.”

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Since then, his phone has been off, the family said.

For several others who have foreign passports, their families have been troubled by bureaucratic red tape. But Indian officials say efforts continue to track down the missing, although this has met roadblocks. “It is becoming increasingly difficult as the Nepal authorities are in touch with only the US embassy regarding their whereabouts since they are US passport holders. But their families are reaching out to the Telangana government for assistance,” an official in-charge of the NRI cell in Telangana said.

Some of those who were stated to be untraceable have since been able to get in touch with their families.

Despite this, some of those who were stated to be untraceable have since been able to get in touch with their families. Among them is 35-year-old Alli Ilasha, a businessman in Hyderabad. “He called to say that he had moved about 40 km ahead of where the landslide hit,” his sister A Vanaja told .

Search continues in the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh. In Andhra, around 10 people are still believed missing.

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But in Guntur, the family and friends of a woman traveller, Aparna Kakani, are glad to have found her. “She’s now texted her family she’s safe,” her friend Nisha told . “She hasn’t been able to make calls, but we’re just glad she’s okay.”

A group of 28 people from Tirupati were traced to Kathmandu, an official from the Andhra Pradesh government said.

“They are at a hotel,” the official said.