Suvendu Adhikari’s Kalimpong Visit to Focus on Teesta, Flood Preparedness

KalimNews | 7 September 2026 | Kalimpong: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari is expected to visit Kalimpong for the first time on September 8 during a short visit to North Bengal and hold administrative meetings to review monsoon preparedness, with special emphasis on the Teesta River.

After reaching Siliguri in the morning, Adhikari is expected to travel to Kalimpong by helicopter, weather permitting, and land at Durpin Helipad before proceeding to Kalimpong town. In case of adverse weather, he may travel by road.

On Tuesday, he is expected to meet officials and attend a public distribution programme at 11 am. Another administrative meeting is also arranged at the Town Hall in Kalimpong with officials.

During the meeting, he is expected to distribute cheques to beneficiaries of Annapurna Bhandar. Relief Assistance will also be handed over to flood vicitim beneficiaries affected by the 2023 GLOF in the Teesta basin.

Administrative preparations are underway for his visit. Leaders from the hills, including Kalimpong MLA Bharat Chettri, other MLAs, MP and ministers, including Minister of State for Home and Hill Affairs Bishal Lama, have been in touch with the administration regarding the arrangements.

During his visit, Adhikari is likely to inspect areas of the proposed Medical College and Hospital in the seed Farm Area and also may visit the areas near the Teesta River, including locations that are generally affected during the monsoon and floods.

He is expected to assess the situation on the ground and discuss measures that can be taken to prevent flooding and minimise its impact.

The visit assumes significance amid heightened concerns over the vulnerability of the Teesta basin following the devastating South Lhonak glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) in 2023, when a massive surge swept down the Teesta, causing extensive destruction in Sikkim and affecting vulnerable areas of Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri downstream.

Areas near Teesta Bazar, 29 Mile, Kalijhora, Rambi, among others, often face flood-like situations when the water level of the Teesta rises.

The visit also comes two days after a major landslide in Mangan district, where a substantial section of the hillside along the newly cut Naga-Tosa Road in the Naga Forest area collapsed near the confluence of the Teesta and Chyakoong rivers, opposite the Theng Tunnel.

The debris partially obstructed the flow of both rivers, leading to water accumulation and concerns over a possible sudden release of impounded water and a downstream surge.

Chungthang police and personnel at the Theng Check Post were deployed to monitor the site, while the police control room was asked to keep vulnerable areas along the lower Teesta belt under watch.

The situation has since shown signs of stabilising.

A subsequent assessment by the Mangan district administration found that the natural river channel had opened further, allowing water to discharge at a steady pace.

Officials said the threat of a sudden water release or flash surge downstream had significantly reduced, though round-the-clock surveillance of river levels and slope stability continues.

Against this backdrop, the state government is expected to explore measures to prevent or reduce the impact of flooding in these vulnerable areas.

Before visiting Kalimpong, Adhikari is expected to arrive in Siliguri in the morning and hold an administrative review meeting virtually with officials from several districts at Uttarkanya, the Branch Secretariat of the West Bengal government.

Officials of the Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri administrations are expected to attend the meeting physically at Uttarkanya, while officials from other districts, from Malda to Cooch Behar, will join online.

Floods, the rising Ganga, erosion in Malda, including the Bhutni area, and heavy rain in the Dooars are expected to figure prominently in the review.

On one hand, the Ganga is eating away at its banks and, on the other, floodwater is rapidly spreading across the low-lying areas, leaving three gram panchayats of Bhutni under Manikchak block of Malda virtually submerged.

With the river continuing to rise, the administration apprehends that nearly two lakh people could be affected within the next 48 hours, as the flood situation threatens to turn critical.

The situation is particularly grim in Bhutni Diara, where around 1.5 lakh people are already marooned.

Several roads have gone under water, cutting off communication with a number of villages.

Officials said that if heavy rain, landslides or road disruptions make the journey difficult, the Chief Minister may instead hold the meeting at Uttarkanya in Siliguri.

The Kalimpong district administration has imposed traffic restrictions for the visit, with heavy vehicles barred from Kalimpong town between 6 am and 4.30 pm on Tuesday.

No-parking restrictions have also been imposed along several key roads.

After his Kalimpong engagements, Adhikari is expected to return to Bagdogra Airport by road and fly back to Kolkata.

However, his detailed schedule has not been made public yet.