Landslide damages 5 houses, buries livestock in Sikkim

A massive landslide occurred in Khamdong Beng Ward of East Sikkim Constituency on the night of July 13. However, no casualties have been reported so far.

Two vehicles -- a Santro (old model) and a standard Alto – were damaged.

The damaged vehicles belonged to Bharat Rai, a resident of Upper Khamdong Ward and Kamal Kumari Rai, a resident of Beng. 

The landslide reportedly also swept away a bridge which connects Khamdong to Singtam.

Five houses were severely damaged and farm animals were buried under the rubble. 

Meanwhile, Gangtok SDM Robin Sewa along with senior officials visited the landslide-hit area early in the morning and took stock of the situation.

Earlier in June, a woman and her two children, aged 10 years and seven months, were killed in a landslide triggered by heavy rains near Gangtok. 

The woman identified as Doma Sherpa (27) and her two sons were sleeping in their hut in Rongey Dokan Dara when the landslide hit around 1 am. 

On the other hand, the National Highway 10 (NH10) has been hit by 22 new landslides in North Bengal. 

NH10, which is considered the lifeline of Sikkim, often remains closed during monsoons.

The frequent occurrence of landslides is a very common phenomenon in Sikkim Himalaya and one that causes the most damage to property and connectivity in the landlocked state and also loss of lives and property.

The magnitude of damages caused every year due to sudden earth movements in many parts of the state is quite large due to the complex geological setup and extensive rainfall in the terrain.

The annual rainfall ranges between 3500 to 5000 mm and monsoon period is fairly long extending from April to September with intensity of 100 to 125 mm per hour.

Apart from this, recent unplanned developmental activities, particularly road construction and ill planned settlements, have further aggravated the incidence of landslides and subsidence.