Evacuation of stranded tourists from Sikkim's Mangan to begin on Sunday

More than 1,200 tourists stranded in Sikkim's Mangan district due to disruption in road and communication network may be evacuated on Sunday if the weather permits, a state government statement said.
    
"The evacuation of tourists from Lachung would begin tomorrow through airlift and roadways, depending on weather conditions," it said on Saturday.
    
Sikkim Tourism and Civil Aviation minister Tshering Thendup Bhutia will coordinate the evacuation of the tourists.
    
According to Tourism and Civil Aviation Secretary CS Rao, around 1,215 tourists, including 15 foreigners, have been stranded in Lachung town for the past one week as incessant rains wreaked havoc on the road and communication network in Mangan district snapping the movement of vehicles to and from Mangan district.
    
At least six people have been killed as landslides and heavy rain impacted the Himalayan state severely, damaging properties and disrupting road connectivity, power and food supplies and mobile networks in several areas.

Also Read: No dearth of essential items for monsoon: Sikkim official
    
Multiple landslides at various stretches, including Dikchu-Sanklang-Toong, Mangan-Sanklang, Singtham-Rangrang and Rangrang-Toong, besides collapse of the vital Sanklang suspension bridge, resulted in the severing of connectivity to North Sikkim.
    
The assessment of properties damaged by the recent downpour was being done by the district administration with the help of the district police and civil officials as well as the general public..
    
The affected areas of the district have been inspected by ministers, Pintso Namgyal Lepcha, Samdup Lepcha and Tshering Thendup Bhutia.
    
The district administration has also disbursed an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased persons.
    
Adequate rations have been stocked up in the district and power and telecommunications and water supply have been restored in most parts of the region as well.
    
The intra circle roaming (ICR), sharing of a network of one operator with another operator, has also been implemented for communication and convenience of the general public, officials said.