Death toll 40 : Efforts intensify across hills, plains to rebuild lives after devastating landslides, floods in North Bengal

From Bijanbari to Mirik, from Kalchini to Nagrakata, officials, public representatives, and community members are working together to bring relief and reassurance to those left homeless by the disaster.

SS | New Delhi | October 11, 2025 : As the mist-laden hills of Darjeeling slowly recover from the scars left by the devastating October 4 landslides, efforts toward rebuilding lives and restoring hope have begun across the region. From Bijanbari to Mirik, from Kalchini to Nagrakata, officials, public representatives, and community members are working together to bring relief and reassurance to those left homeless by the disaster.

Darjeeling District Magistrate Preeti Goyal visited the worst-hit areas of Bijanbari, Pulbazar, Thaneline, and adjoining villages on Friday, accompanied by SDO Richard Lepcha. They distributed food relief items received as support from GTA Sabhasad Bikash Adhikari and local Panchayat members. Ms Goyal assured that reconstruction and rehabilitation works will begin shortly. She said senior PWD engineers have already inspected the damaged Pulbazar bridge, and restoration of the road to Thaneline is underway. “Relief distribution will continue until normalcy returns. The reconstruction of the damaged bridge and rehabilitation of affected families will soon begin,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) has launched a land identification drive to rehabilitate families rendered homeless by the landslides in Tharbu, Soureni, Fuwagadhi, and nearby tea garden areas of Mirik. GTA Chief Executive Anit Thapa has assured that houses will be built once tea gardens formally provide land. On Friday, GTA Chief’s representative Diwas Chhetri, member Arun Sigchi, and others met tea garden managers who agreed in principle to allocate land after administrative formalities are completed. Chhetri added that a complete list of affected families is being prepared, and house construction will begin once land measurements are done.

In another development, GTA Sabhasad Ajoy Lucas Edwards has written to Darjeeling MP Raju Bista, urging him to allocate funds under the MPLAD scheme for rehabilitation and reconstruction following the October 4 disaster that claimed over 20 lives and destroyed several homes and bridges. Edwards reminded that similar MPLAD funds were not utilized during the 2023 Teesta tragedy and appealed for immediate and transparent intervention this time.

From the Dooars, Kalchini MLA Vishal Lama has written to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, requesting her direct intervention to ensure proper relief and rehabilitation for flood-hit families in his constituency. Lama said he has submitted a list of genuine victims and described the devastation in Subhashini Tea Garden, where floodwaters from Bhutan destroyed homes and plantations. He also met Bhutanese officials along with local representatives to highlight the situation.

Responding to the ongoing crisis, MP Raju Bista expressed heartfelt gratitude to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, BJP Assam president Dilip Saikia, and BJP National General Secretary (Org) B.L. Santhosh for sending eight truckloads of relief materials to the affected regions. “This gesture of solidarity and support from the people of Assam, in our times of crisis, is deeply appreciated. It shows that in adversity, the bonds of friendship and compassion across states remain unbreakable,” Bista said.

Meanwhile, Siliguri MLA Dr. Sankar Ghosh has sent relief materials collected from his constituency to Nagrakata MLA Puna Bhengra for distribution among families in Shulkapara, who were forced to flee their homes at midnight as floodwaters engulfed the area.

Former minister and senior CPI(M) leader Asok Bhattacharya, accompanied by state committee member Gautam Ghosh, on Friday visited several landslide-affected areas in Mirik to assess the situation. The duo interacted with residents taking shelter at the Soureni, Naomile Shimul Club, and Nandalal Relief Camps, where many have been staying since the disaster with no certainty about returning home.

Expressing concern, Bhattacharya said, “The landslide-affected people must be immediately rehabilitated in safe locations and provided with proper compensation.”

Many residents became emotional upon seeing the veteran leader, recalling his earlier tenure as MLA and the development initiatives he had undertaken in the Mirik region.

Meanwhile, Siliguri Mayor Goutam Dev has been distributing relief materials in flood-affected areas of Siliguri and adjoining Jalpaiguri over the past three days, accompanied by civic volunteers and local representatives.

With the recovery of one more body during the last 24 hours, the total number of deaths in the flood and landslide-affected hills, Terai, and Dooars regions of West Bengal has risen to 40. The total official death toll as of Thursday morning, the last reported, was 39, according to figures compiled by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the district administrations in Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri. Now, the death toll has climbed to 40. On Friday, the body of a woman was recovered near Tutkelhi Gidenat Rammdaiga in Nagrakata in Jalpaiguri district. The body came floating in the flowing stream of a loud riser, confirmed an official of the Jalpaiguri district administration. The deceased is yet to be identified.