Stranded pilgrims wait to board a helicopter at Kedarnath in Uttarakhand on Monday. (AFP)

Berhampur, June 24: Family members of 14 pilgrims from Berhampur are spending sleepless nights as the persons, who were on a tour to the Himalayan shrines of Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri, are still missing in Uttarakhand.

Local people said nine of the missing pilgrims — B. Bhagirathi Patra, 64, Manikemu Patra, 61, Padma Patra, 52, B. Ajarumu Patra, 50, B. Subash Patra, 36, Jhilli Patra, 29, Sib Shankar Patra, 13, Sonali Patra, 11, and Manoj Patra, 6 — are from the same family.

“I last contacted them on mobile phone on June 15 when they were in Uttarakhand. Since then, we have not been able to contact them. Subash, who works with the Indian Army, is posted in Dehradun. He has accompanied them to Kedarnath,” said Bijaya Patra of Lanjipalli here.

Four pilgrims — Bipra Charan Chowdhury, 60, Kanakalata, 52, Balaram, 33, and Kedarnath, 34 — of Tota Sahi at Gosaninuagaon left Berhampur on June 9 for Kedarnath. “We spoke to the group last on June 15,” said Bipra Charan’s nephew Kartik Mahapatra.

“We have contacted Odisha Bhavan in New Delhi and sent their photographs and other details. But, we are yet to find them,” said Kartik.

Balaji Reddy, 72, from Bajapalli village in Basudevpur panchayat in the Digapahandi police station area in Ganjam is yet another missing person.