Landslide snaps link to sikkim

Picture by Kundan Yolmo

TT, 26 June 2015: Traffic along NH10 (formerly NH31A) that connects Sikkim with the rest of the country remained snapped throughout Friday following a landslide at Swetijhora. Officials of the Border Roads Organisation are at the site and trying to clear the debris, while the vehicles moving to Sikkim or Kalimpong are making detours via Darjeeling and Gorubathan.

"The officials of the BRO have been working throughout the day today to clear the debris but they had to stop work this evening (Friday) because of inclement weather. They will again start working from tomorrow morning and we hope the road would be cleared by 11am or so," Anurag Srivastava, the district magistrate of Darjeeling, said on Friday evening.

"All the vehicles are making detours, using alternative roads, to reach their destinations." The landslide at Swetijhora, 30km from Siliguri, occurred on Thursday evening.

According to travel agents, those taking the alternative routes have to travel an additional 60km.

"Those going to Gangtok had to travel around 180km, instead of 120km through NH10. Similarly, those heading for Kalimpong had to travel around 130km, instead of 70 km. This means, the journey to Gangtok from Siliguri became a six-hour trip," said Samrat Sanyal, the working president of the Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators' Association.