Australian students are among those cut off by deadly flash floods in India's remote Himalayan region of Ladakh.

At least 165 people have been killed and hundreds more are missing, with many feared buried alive in one village, after sudden floods hit the normally arid area in Kashmir on Friday.

The devastation has so far centred around the town of Leh, where houses, roads and bridges have been swept away.

An entire army post is believed to have been swept away in a landslide and sniffer dogs have been brought into the village of Choglamsar to try and find those buried under a tide of mud and rock.

At least 140 foreign tourists have been rescued by Indian military helicopters and efforts are underway to reach another 200 foreigners who are stranded in the area.

Among them are two Australian medical students, who are with a group of American and British doctors stranded just 35 kilometres west of Leh, in the tiny village of Nimu.

Griffith University student Lucy Dunstan is part of the American-run group, Himalayan Health Exchange, who is travelling through the region on a trip bringing medical aid to locals.

The students had just left Leh when the floods hit, but are now stranded in Nimu after bridges and roads were destroyed by the deluge.

Ms Dunstan's mother Sally, who lives on the Gold Coast, says they received a call from an Indian army captain yesterday who told them their daughter is safe.

"Yesterday morning, about 5.00am we had a phone call from a captain in the Indian army who had been with Lucy and the others from the Himalayan Health Exchange where they're stranded," she said.

"He was just ringing to let us know that Lucy was safe and that there was no need for us to be concerned.

"[He said] he would also be going back the next day to check on them again, but he was just reassuring us that they were safe and that as soon as they could they would be moved once the road was repaired."

Ms Dunstan says she has since been able to speak to her daughter, who told her the group had set up a medical clinic at its camp.

"They've been able to set up a little medical clinic and they're giving some medical aid to village people who are also stranded and can't get back to their village, and some foreigners," she said.

She says her daughter was able to have her first shower yesterday, and the group is otherwise well equipped.

"They had their tents and luckily they had the food kitchen with them, so they've had shelter and they've had food and they're near an army base so they've been well looked after by army personnel and we've also been told yesterday that there's always police with them for their safety," she said.

It is unknown how long it will take for emergency workers to make repairs so those stranded can be evacuated.

The group is supposed to be venturing to Manali, in India's north, but they may now wait until they can return to Leh to help out with the relief effort.