Nepal's hill areas were the worst hit by the quake last Saturday as the death toll from remote areas has not been counted yet, said Nepal's army chief on Saturday.

The local daily The Himalayan Times quoted the chief of army staff of Nepal, Gaurav Shumsher J.S. Rana as saying that the death toll could exceed 10,000.

He also said 60 to 65 international rescue teams were offering help in search and rescue work.

However, he also criticized the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) for failing to respond to the quake within 30 hours of the tragedy.

"Often INSARAG responds to such tragedies within 30 hours, but in our case, it failed to provide help within 30 hours," he was quoted as saying.
Source: XINHUA