Situation worsens as Rainfall continues in Sikkim and North Bengal
- Oct 20, 2021,
- Updated Oct 20, 2021, 12:21 AM IST
The situation continues to worsen due to heavy rainfall in Sikkim and North Bengal resulting in several landslides.
Darjeeling district magistrate, S Poonambalam informed, " There are lots of landslides in the district and we are compiling the details. So far there is no report of loss of human lives."
The National Highway 10 the lifeline of Sikkim is closed at several places.
The places where the landslides have occured on National Highway 10 are 29th Mile, 11th Mile, 6.5 km, 2 km and 22 km.
Subodh Chettri the executive engineer of the PWD, division 9 said " it seems not possible to restore the moment of heavy vehicles on Wednesday. We are trying to restore the moment of small vehicles by 4 pm, Wednesday."
The road connecting Kalimpong via Lava is closed at several places towards Kalimpong and Gorubathan. Hundreds of tourists and their vehicles are stranded at Lava in Kalimpong district.
The administration has issued an advisory saying the only route which seems ok is via Ghoom and Kurseong.
In Kurseong, many houses are said to have been completely damaged.
Don't take the Lava route as it is still closed. Don't try the Panbu route as it is desolate and you might get help in case of distress, the advisory said.
The additional support pillars of Rangpo Bridge connecting Sikkim with West Bengal which were severely damaged, have been washed away, reports said
In Sikkim, the western district has suffered most of the damages.
The rainfall is continuing thus making the restoration and rehabilitation works difficult.
There are landslides on NH 55 at Mahanadi (Kurseong to Sukna)..However Rohini Road, Pankabari road is open for traffic.
There are landslides at Pokhriabong to Sukhiyapokri , Ghoom to Bijanbari Roads. Clearance will be started shortly..One small bridge has collapsed in Maneybhanjyang to Rimbick road.
A small slip observed in Balason Bridge at NH 31. Vehicle traffic has been restricted in this bridge until thorough inspection. Traffic is being diverted through Noukhaghat More.