Fresh landslides in hills of north Bengal, traffic out of gear on NH 10

Kolkata : Following fresh and massive landslides in Darjeeling and Kalimpong after continuous and heavy showers in the northern Bengal region, the traffic movements on National High 10 have been thrown out of gear.

The entire road from Teesta Bazar to Kalimpong is blocked. Continuous and heavy showers in the neighbouring hill state of Sikkim have made the situation extremely crucial for the entire north Bengal, which includes both the hills and the plains.

At the same time, fresh release of flood water from the Teesta barrage has made the situation further worse for the plans in north Bengal. The people residing in the low-lying areas are being constantly alerted by the local administration.

The district administration said that the prediction of continued rainfall in the hills throughout Saturday has been an added cause of concern for the officials.

“There has been continuous rainfall in the hills since Friday afternoon, which is still continuing. If the heavy showers continue, there are chances of further landslides, which will make the situation even more critical,” a district administration official said.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has already announced that she will reach north Bengal on Sunday and will personally visit the different flood-affected areas there for the next few days to review the situation. Her date of return to Kolkata is not yet decided.

Following the crucial situation, the tour operators are apprehending major losses in business in the forthcoming tourist season because of the long festival month approaching with Durga Puja and ending with Diwali.

While the situation is extremely critical in north Bengal, there has been considerable improvement in the districts of south Bengal because of the dry spell from Friday. Flood water has started receding from different inundated areas, especially in Howrah, Hooghly, East Midnapore and West Midnapore districts.