Stranded tourists return to Gangtok - Bridge collapse makes 300 halt in north Sikkim village overnight

The Gurudongmar lake in north Sikkim that is a big draw for tourists

TT, Gangtok, May 18: Around 300 tourists were stranded overnight on the way back to Gangtok from north Sikkim as a concrete bridge over a stream collapsed near the north Sikkim highway. 

The tourists, many of them from Bengal and who had gone to Yumthang valley and Gurudongmar lake, returned to Gangtok this evening after local police and villagers built a tacky log bridge over the stream and arranged for transport. 

Rel Kyong is around 75km
from Gangtok.

From today, the police in Gangtok have stopped issuing permits for north Sikkim that is frequented by tourists who want to visit Lachen, Lachung, Yumthang valley and Gurudongmar lake. Permits to go to north Sikkim will be issued after the bridge is mended. 

The bridge, part of the north Sikkim highway, has the North district headquarters, Mangan, on one side and Chungthang on the other. 

"The Chungthang-Mangan road is closed as the bridge at Rel Kyong got washed away by the overflowing stream yesterday," said the North district collector Karma Bonpo.