The Governor of Sikkim, B.P. Singh takes aerial survey of the earthquake affected North Sikkim

Gangtok, September 28:Army made 12 helicopter sorties today to the inaccessible parts of Chungthang, Lachen and Lachung in Sikkim as weather improved aiding resumption of relief work in quake-ravaged areas of North district.

No sorties could be made yesterday due to inclement weather, but today the army choppers airdropped 9,408 kg of relief to the region as the rains stopped, Army spokesman Col Ravi Patil said.

Official sources said there was no rise in the quake toll figure of 93 in the past two days.

In North district, Army authorities evacuated 100 stranded people from various interior places to Mangan and altogether 106 people from Lachung, Lachen and Chungthang to Gangtok, Patil said.

At least 400 persons have been evacuated by air and 7,900 people by road from the quake-hit areas in North district, army sources said.

A team of six scientists, police and doctors were taken to Chungthang while equipment like generators and water purification tools were also airlifted to the affected areas.

 

The Governor of Sikkim, B.P. Singh visited North Sikkim on an army chopper on Tuesday for an aerial survey of the earthquake affected areas of Chungthang, Lachen and Lachung.

In Mangan, the headquarters of North district, Governor B P Singh visited the 140-year-old Ringhim Monastery which had suffered extensive damage during the earthquake, after reaching the spot by helicopter.
The Governor assured the monks of all assistance in rebuilding the structure and advised the monastery management to immediately fence the premises for the necessary security.

Singh also visited the district hospital and met those who received injuries during the quake.

The Governor also visited the relief camp run by the state administration which provides food and shelter to the affected.

He later told reporters that each control room in the district headquarters is being monitored by a minister to secure better co-ordination.Governor expressed his appreciation for the hard work put in by all the organizations especially the Army, ITBP, NDRF and the State Administration.

Meanwhile, a central team led by Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Shambhu Singh, reached Gangtok today from New Delhi to assess the earthquake damage, official sources said.

The team, which is scheduled to visit all four districts of the state, also include officials from all ministries concerned.

Sources said 2,542 houses were destroyed and and 6,765 houses damaged in the quake in West district where 181 families were now given shelter in 20 relief camps spread across four blocks.

As per a preliminary report prepared by the North district administration, the tremor destroyed 432 buildings and 643 kutcha houses and damaged 2,965 buildings and 5,398 kutcha houses.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Sikkim on September 29

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is scheduled to visit the earthquake-hit areas of Sikkim on September 29. West Bengal Chief Secretary Samar Ghosh told reporters Dr. Singh would reach Gangtok via Bagdogra in north Bengal from Delhi.

Home Department Officials said the Prime Minister's detailed programme had not been received yet.

Over 100 people lost their lives in the September 18 earthquake

Sikkim Earthquake impact studies at the dam sites of NHPC



Earthquake not caused by Hydro Power Projects: Sikkim CM



India’s power ministry has asked seismic experts from the Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee (IIT-R) to conduct earthquake impact studies at the dam sites of state-owned NHPC Ltd and North Eastern Electric Power Corp. Ltd (Neepco).



The Sikkim earthquake has raised questions on the future of India’s hydropower development. The 18 September 6.8 magnitude earthquake on the Sikkim-Nepal border has wreaked havoc in the Himalayan country and the Indian state, and scientists say the likelihood of a much greater earthquake in north India remains. At least 118 people have been killed in Sikkim, West Bengal and Bihar in the quake.

Teesta Urja Ltd, which is building the 1,200MW Teesta-III project in Sikkim, suffered losses of personnel, with 17 people killed, one missing and 10 hurt.

The decision to take IIT-R’s help was taken at a review meeting last Thursday that was chaired by minister of state (power ministry) K.C. Venugopal.

“It was decided to avail the services of seismic experts from IIT-R to analyse earthquake data and conduct the earthquake impact study at the dam sites of NHPC in the region, and more specifically those in Sikkim,” the ministry said in a statement. “Neepco was also asked to compile the seismic data collected from its power stations in north-eastern states for further analysis at IIT-R.”

The total hydropower generation potential of India’s north-eastern states and Bhutan is about 58,000MW. Of this, Arunachal Pradesh alone accounts for 50,328MW. Sikkim, as well as most of north India, falls in seismic zones 4 and 5, regions classified as highly vulnerable to high-intensity quakes.

Any delays in construction of hydropower projects in the region, particularly those on rivers originating in China, would affect India’s strategy of establishing its prior-use claim, according to international law.

India is concerned that hydropower projects planned in Arunachal Pradesh may be affected by China’s plan to divert water from rivers that flow into the Brahmaputra to the arid zones of Xinjiang and Gansu.

“India’s hydro potential is locked in the North-East,” said former power secretary Anil Razdan. “You can’t plan for this kind of thing. It is a grey area. Earthquake prediction is very difficult.”

Hydropower projects come with their own set of problems. Their construction requires specialized technology and design. They also have to deal with geological surprises such as earthquakes, floods and landslides. With the share of hydropower generated in the country falling from 40% to 25% in the past 20 years, the government is worried as this makes up only 38,206MW of the 181,558MW power generating capacity.

“We and Neepco are the major hydropower developers active in the North-East. We’ll study data from our monitoring centres to know the impact of the quake for future references,” said D.P. Bhargava, director, technical, NHPC. “We’ll first study it internally and then send it to IIT-R.”

NHPC has a power generation capacity of 5,295MW that includes two operating projects in Sikkim. It is constructing a 2,000MW project in Arunachal Pradesh and also has plans to set up projects having a total capacity of 6,696MW in north-eastern states such as Sikkim, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh.

Bhargava defended the design of his projects. “There has been no damage to our projects,” he said. “We design our projects for earthquakes and such an incident should not stop us for planning for projects in the region.”

Several hydro projects have been delayed and India has met less than half the target of 14,393MW set for hydropower generation in the 10th Five-year Plan period (2002-07).

The country plans to add another 16,501.17MW of hydropower capacity by 2012. While the country has a hydropower potential of 300,000MW, around 145,000MW of this can be exploited.

Gurudwara provides community kitchen [Langar] to 3000 Sikkim Earthquake Victims

Chungthang is a town in North Sikkim district in the Indian state of Sikkim. It is situated at the confluence of two rivers: River Lachen and Lachung Chu, both tributaries of the River Teesta. Chungthang is located a distance of 95 kilometres from the capital Gangtok. The Indian army has a major forward base in the town including a medical centre.
There are about 300 people, mostly labourers, at the relief camp opened at the “Gurudwara Nanak Lama Sahib”, Chungthang, campus where a community kitchen [Langar] prepares food for around 3,000 people everyday, inform Kuldeep Singh and Sada Singh from the Kar Seva Bangla Saheb, New Delhi. They had come here in March. The Gurudwara committee members inform that people are coming in there from Lachen, Lachung, Dombang and Thangu.

History

According to a legend, Guru Padmasambhabwa {Buddhist Guru} visited the town before going to Tibet and left his footprint on a rock where he once rested. Around the rock some paddy is grown, which is supposed to be a miracle as paddy does not grow in these conditions. Local people earned their livelihood on these paddy fields until the Army was deployed there.

It is believed Guru Nanak Dev ji visited this place during his trip (Udasi) to China and Tibet. Guru Nanak Dev ji dug his walking stick at a place where eventually the stick has grown into a tree which has trunk in stick shape and leaves are below the rounded trunk which looks like handle of stick. An amrit kund was also made to appear there by Guru ji. Guru Nanak visited the place during his third udasi in order to solace the Karma pa Nying ma pa sect then being hounded out from Tibet by the Ge lug pa sect. It is also said that Guru Nanak, on one of his journeys along with his disciples, had come across this place and vanquished two demons here before proceeding. The footprints of that battle were believed to be still left on that cordoned off rock. It is also said that Chungthang derived from the Punjabi, “Changa sthan” or good place, which Guru Nanak had bestowed on it

Army wants VVIPs kept out of Sikkim till relief and rescue operations

Gangtok: The Army has given an unusual suggestion to the government for improving the relief and rescue operations in earthquake devastated regions of Sikkim - keep VVIPs off the area.

A senior government source said the Army conveyed its suggestion to the defence ministry this weekend, after the Army and IAF were forced to divert significant number helicopters and personnel for visit of various VVIPs. Among those who have already visited the region are Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi and home minister P Chidambaram.

The suggestion could put an end to the plans of other Union ministers and senior political leaders to visit Gangtok and other areas of northern Sikkim where the damage has been the worst. The Army on its part is also believed to have decided not to plan a trip by the Army chief or other senior officers to avoid strain on the ongoing rescue operations.

Because of a host of factors, including the remoteness of villages, the rescue and relief operations are heavily dependent on the helicopter fleet of IAF and Army. Between the two forces, there is a fleet of Advance Light Helicopters, Cheetah/Chetak and Mi-17s in the region.

For Chungthang and beyond, the Army maintains ration of 55 days on normal times, as part of its preparedness for the border region. But since the earthquake, this ration is being distributed to local residents. Thus maintaining those ration stocks, reaching aviation fuel, diesel etc to the military formations that are beyond the road cut-off by earthquake are all dependent on helicopters.

An Army official said personnel of 33 Corps has reached almost all villages, but in many villages they found only rubble. It could be due to the residents migrating to nearest road-heads, or other villages, or there could be worse than assessed disaster buried in those villages, he admitted.

Over 90 people have been killed and a few hundred injured in the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck on September 18.

Sikkim CM Pawan Chamling not to celebrate Dasain or Diwali as a mark of mourning for quake victims

NAMCHI, 25 Sept: Chief Minister Pawan Chamling arrived in South Sikkim today as part of his tour of earthquake-affected areas of the State. The CM, it may be recalled, was in North Sikkim yesterday. At Namchi, he met the victims of the earthquake recuperating at the Namchi District Hospital and handed over cash aid of Rs. 50,000 each to them. The Chief Minister also interacted with the victims, consoling them urging them to find the resolve to build their lives afresh. He also announced today that the ex-gratia payments announced for the earthquake affected will be released equally and without discrimination between locals and non-locals.
He also inspected the hospital premises and called on other patients admitted there, handing over cash assistance to them as well.
Earlier, the CM addressed a gathering at the Indoor Gymnasium Hall and stressed that the State was going through a very difficult phase and needed its people to stand strong and united to ensure that the more affected parts and people recovered from the calamity.

Announcing that he will not be celebrating Dasain or Diwali as a mark of mourning for the lives lost to the earthquake, the CM stressed that this was not the time for divisive mentalities because Sikkim needed the emotional unity of all its people to overcome the situation.
He also called on the people not to succumb the rumours because hoaxes had the potential to unravel the relief and rescue efforts and compromise the welfare of people still stranded in remote parts of the State.
He also informed today that in the rebuilding and rehabilitation process, preference will be given to the more seriously damaged houses and the more affected people.
On damages suffered by religious institutions, the Chief Minister reiterated that all these structures will be retrofitted to ensure long-term stability and the severely damaged ones will be reconstructed.
The CM directed government officials to restore all basic infrastructure ahead of the Dasain holidays, and ensure that all the pending bills be released before the festival.
Earlier, the Chief Minister also visited Jorethang, the worst-affected part of South Sikkim.
Here, he handed over ex gratia payment of Rs. 5 lak to the family of the lady killed in a building collapse there. He also handed over ex gratia payments to those injured in the earthquake there.
The CM also inspected the damage suffered at the Solophok Char Dhaam site

Pune’s superwomen saving lives in Sikkim

As the world’s eyes were affixed on TV channels witnessing the horror that unfolded in Sikkim due to the earthquake last Sunday, the heroes of the Indian Air Force (IAF) wasted no time and geared themselves up for the relief work.

One such champion is 26-year-old helicopter pilot Arunima Vidhate — posted at IAF’s Bagdogra airport — who was one of the first ones to conduct survey of the quake-hit area.

“The first thing I saw during the aerial recee was numerous landslides and how areas were cut off because of that. Thereafter our team started relief work, air-dropping food packets, medicines and other relief material for the affected people,” said Vidhate, who has 300 hours of flying helicopters.

She is one of the two women pilots who are part of the 18-member pilot team which is flying small helicopters like ‘Cheetah’ and ‘Chetak’ to provide relief material to the quake-hit areas in Sikkim.

The other woman pilot is PP Ranade, 25. She was initially involved in the ground work but now for the past couple of days she is also flying and taking the relief material to valleys of north Sikkim — which suffered the most destruction.

Recounting her experience, Ranade said: “One thing which strikes me most was the joy among people when they hear the sound of our helicopter approaching them. Their feeling that they have not been left alone and that there is someone for them touched me.” Echoing her views, Vidhate said: “What can satisfy more than watching someone alright whom you had admitted to hospital.”

The ‘superwomen duo’ hails from Maharashtra’s Pune area but as they were asked about their place, they shot back saying they are from India.

Vidhate comes from a defence background and the history of her family in military services goes back to four generations. Ranade, however, is the first one from her family in IAF and joined the force as she ‘loves flying’. Asked if they want to fly other helicopters, they smiled and revealed that their eyes are firmly set on bigger helicopters like Mi-17s.

Earthquakes unlikely in Sikkim for next few years: IIT expert

Sikkim is unlikely to face any large earthquake over the next couple of years as vast energy has been released through last Sunday's tremors and aftershocks, says SK Nath, senior professor of geology and geophysics, IIT-Kharagpur.

Although the recent quake left scores dead and devastated vast areas in north Sikkim, the leading geologist says the damage would have been worse had its full fury been felt in the state's more populous south, where no building code is followed.

"Though many people have died in Sikkim, I must say that Sikkim was lucky this time as the epicentre of the earthquake was the Sikkim-Nepal border," he said.

"That is why the northern part faced the wrath and south Sikkim did not face much problem," said Nath, who has been working extensively on the microzonation and seismicity of the Sikkim region since 1995.

"It was quite a large earthquake and it also released a few aftershocks," said Nath. "So I can say that for at least the next couple of years there will be no such earthquake in Sikkim."

He rubbished reports of Mangan in the north district being the epicentre of the earthquake.

"I do not know from where reports are coming that Mangan is the epicentre. It is in the middle of Sikkim. Had Mangan been the epicentre, the whole of Bhutan and North Bengal up to Siliguri would have been in ruins," Nath told IANS in an interview.

Nath, who has been teaching in IIT-Kharagpur since 1988, said the main reason for earthquakes in India is the Indian plate going under the Eurasian plate.

"The Indian plate is still going under the Eurasian plate. It is going under at a rate 46 millimetres per year," said Nath.

Nath, the principal investigator on the project of Department of Earth Sciences Microzonation of Sikkim Region, submitted a report in 2006 regarding what kind of quake-proof buildings should come up in the hill state.

According to Nath, Sikkim is divided into two seismic zones: North Sikkim falls under seismic zone 4 and South Sikkim, which includes areas of Gangtok and Singtham, falls under seismic zone 5.

Seismic Microzonation is a process by which an area is divided into zones -- in accordance with the character of the area such as ground shaking, susceptibility, rock fall hazard and earthquake-related flooding.

"If you go to south Sikkim, which falls in Zone 5, it has a lot of two lean buildings side by side, with very little gap between them. No building code is followed there," said Nath, who received the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in 2002.

"It is true that Sikkim's mainstay is tourism and Gangtok its main attraction. But there should be a proper procedure for construction of buildings," said Nath.

North Sikkim after earthquake photos

AFTER EARTHQUAKE PHOTOS OF NORTH SIKKIM

India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Sikkim on Sept 27

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will visit earthquake hit Sikkim on September 27. Sikkim’s information and public relations secretary Karma Tobgay said that Singh would be visiting the state on September 27 to take stock of the situation.

The state had been hit by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake on September 18 causing extensive damage especially in North Sikkim. “The government of Sikkim will be handing him a detailed report on the damages caused by the killer quake” said Tobgay.

As rescue and relief operations continued in the incessant rain the official death toll hit the 77 mark. The injured are being treated in various government facilities and also referred to hospitals outside the state.

“There are 102 relief camps operational in the quake affected areas of the state. The Sikkim government employees have decided to contribute a day’s salary for relief. The state government has already handed over a sum of Rs 12 crore, 51 lakhs and 50 thousand to various departments for immediate relief and reconstruction” added the IPR secretary.

Heavy rains since Friday night have triggered anxiety of further damage. On Friday night a five-storied building collapsed in the Baluakhani area of Gangtok after a six storied building had tilted on it. Eight persons were injured in the incident.

100 Army Special Forces troops deployed in Sikkim

Gangtok:To carry out relief operations in areas rendered inaccessible due to the powerful earthquake that struck the Himalayan region last week, the Indian Army has deployed over 100 troops of its Special Forces in Sikkim.

Indian Army's Para-Special Forces deployed in nearby locations were brought here and then flown to totally cut off regions in North Sikkim by Mi-17 choppers, Indian Air Force (IAF) officials said.

Over four sorties with 22 SF troops each were flown to Chungthang and from there they were sent to forward locations.

The SF troops are carrying with them special equipment including ropes and other climbing gear which can be used to reach inaccessible places in mountains and help in rescuing stranded civilians and military personnel.

The troops are also carrying stretchers to evacuate stranded people.

The SF men have been divided in various small teams to conduct rescue operations in targeted areas and are also assisting in clearing important roads in the quake-hit areas of Sikkim.

The SF troops have been positioned in areas where the 112 brigade of the Indian Army is deployed. This Brigade which looks after the Indian border with China has been cut off from roads since the earthquake struck the region on September 18.

The army SF troops have been trained to carry out special operations in both conventional and non-conventional warfare.

Five-storey house goes down

Gangtok, Sept. 24: A five-storey house belonging to Bhaichung Bhutia’s mentor and state sports secretary Karma P. Bhutia collapsed tonight after an adjoining six-storey building tilted and fell against it, injuring eight persons.

The incident occurred two days after The Telegraph reported how building norms were being flouted in a mountainous terrain that is under seismic zone IV, the second most vulnerable area in the country according to the India Meteorological Department that had drawn up the classification. In Gangtok, the height of buildings is restricted to five storeys.

Around 6.15pm, the six-storied building of the late Sonam Choda Lepcha, a minister in the Nar Bahadur Bhandari government, suddenly tilted and hit Karma’s house in the Baluakhani area of town. Karma’s house, a concrete structure, then came down as a pack of cards.

All but the two top floors of the building can be seen resting but that also in a tilted position at the road level. The floors below have been totally destroyed, police said.

Karma’s house had an ATM kiosk on the first floor which also had the office of Bhaichung’s United Sikkim Football Club. A club official present at the spot said the office was completely buried under rubble and all the cups and trophies were inside. “We are yet to assess the damage,” he said.

Bhutia’s driver in STNM

“Karma and his daughter, Rinzing were watching television while two carpenters were working when suddenly he saw the adjoining building begin to sway and start tilting to its left. Both of them managed to come out just in time. But two carpenters were trapped as was Bhutia’s driver,” the club official said. He said the late minister’s house had tilted after Sunday’s quake. Local people said yesterday’s tremor at 10.20pm followed by rain this evening must have done the final damage.

According to M.S. Tuli, the police superintendent of East Sikkim, seven persons, four from Sonam’s house and the same number from Karma’s house have been rescued. All those rescued from Karma’s house — his driver Sonam Bhutia, tenant O.P. Chhetri, and two carpenters from Jalpaiguri, Sujit Sarkar and Prasanta Sarkar — were admitted to the STNM Hospital.

Sonam’s family members had vacated the building after Sunday’s quake.

K.B. Guring, an assistant medical officer at the STNM Hospital, said all three had suffered head injuries but they “were stable.”

“The area has been cordoned off and rescue operations were carried out by the army, the fire brigade, the police and personnel of the civil defence. The rescue operations are over,” Tuli said. He said two vehicles parked between the two buildings were badly damaged.

Pradip Chhetri, a tenant in Sonam’s house, said when the building started tilting, he thought it was another earthquake. “It was raining heavily and I suddenly felt the house tilt to its left side and crash against the one next door. I managed to use ropes to clamber down on to the street,” Pradip said.

(The Telegraph)

Relief team reaches traumatized remote Sikkim Villages

Relief team carrying relief materials crosses a landslide at Bey Village in Upper Dzongu on 22nd September 2011

Funeral of earthquake victims at Bey where seven people were killed when a landslide pulverised their homes. The funeral was organized by VHAS volunteers. A fresh landslide tore down the slope even as the cremation was underway

The volunteers distribute medicines to earthquake
survivors at Bey

The part of Bey village where a landslide washed away
seven people and their homes on Sunday night

Voluntary Health Association of Sikkim (VHAS) has been trying to gather information on the disaster and also directly visiting affected areas of different districts for immediate relief work.

VHAS has been coordinating with government agencies such as District Control Room, District Development Officers, Block Development Officer, Rural Development Assistant, Panchayats members and NGOs, informs a press release.
A team of VHAS comprising of Executive Director, Dr BB Rai, Mr Nehru, Mr Ashok, Mr. Ash Bahadur, Mr. Subhankar, Mr. Kamal and Mr. Prem Chettri reached the highly affected villages of Tumin Gram Panchayat Unit of East District on 19 Sept. As access to the villages was totally damaged, the team had to walk through jungles and hills for more than five hours to reach the affected villages.

The VHAS relief team reached Bey village yesterday at 10.30 am where almost all the houses are totally damaged. The team distributed readymade food items, poly tents, torch with batteries and First Aid boxes containing medicines for minor ailments. While the VHAS team was interacting with the Panchayat, a helicopter came and dropped raw food items basically rice, dal and cooking oil. After collecting the items that were dropped, they were stored in one damaged house. In order to protect it from rain, the VHAS team covered the roof of the house with poly tents.
Thanking the team, the Panchayat, narrated the story of the earthquake and landslides. He said, members of his family have been washed away by the landslides while his brother and sister in-law were buried along with their child but the disaster has compelled him to be strong to face the challenges ahead. A total of seven people have been washed away in the Bey village and one child is missing, he said. One part of the Bey village comprising of four houses was totally washed away without leaving any trace, he added.
The VHAS Relief team helped them in organizing the funeral of four dead bodies on the bank of a nearby river. While the funeral ceremony was going on, landslides suddenly struck and every one ran away from the place, halfway through the funeral. The team convinced the people to come down to Lingzya village, a safer and accessible place where relief camps are well organized. The people have agreed to come down to Lingzya village by tomorrow.
The VHAS team returned in the afternoon and reported the situation to the North District Control Room and reached Gangtok last night.

Superstitions, rumours add to Sikkim's quake woes

GANGTOK: Natural calamities have always had a share of superstition built around them, and there are many in today's Sikkim, including Buddhist monks, who believe that more quakes are in store and that the ones to come would be even more devastating.

Hundreds of people from township areas like Gangtok are seeking safer havens either down in the plains or in their villages, till such time as the 'evil eye' is on the state.

People are scared and rumours abound. On Thursday, there were rumours of flash floods having swept away 106 people, while on Friday, Sikkim woke up to intense rumours of lava welling up from the depths of Gurudongmar Lake, one of the world's highest fresh water lakes at 17,100 feet in north Sikkim. The scare has scarred public imagination.

Added the fact that meteorological experts confirm no less than 50 earthquakes having rocked the state since September 18 so far, the situation is still tense.

Despite the superb handling of the post-quake scene by the Army and civil authorities, there is a sense of doom among common people who aren't sure at all of what lies ahead.

According to Gopinath Raha, met-in-charge of Sikkim, the saga of quakes did not end last Sunday, when the first earthquake struck. The primary quake measured 6.9 on the Richter scale and this was followed in minutes by two more of about 4-plus intensity. Raha confirmed that till date, more than 50 have taken place, of which about 8 were pretty big, while the rest 42 were mild bordering between 3 and 1 Richter.

Raha said that even last Sunday, the three quakes that were felt, were not the only ones to have taken place. Infact, Sikkim was rocked 18 times that evening and through the night. It was just that the three that got reported, were the only ones that jolted people everywhere.

This was followed by a virtual deluge of quakes. There were 20 last Monday, two on Tuesday, six on Wednesday and four on Thursday. The northern reaches are still under heavy rains. Infact Army sources confirmed that while they were able to rescue 45 people on Friday from Chungthang in choppers, flying further north wasn't possible.

With rescue teams facing difficulties to reach some farflung quakehit areas in Sikkim, hundreds of survivors are trekking out of their cut-off villages, crawling sometimes to negotiate dangerous stretches. Hundreds of villagers from inaccessible higher areas of Lachung, Lachen and Chungthan have gathered at Tung after an arduous trek down and are being taken to safe places.

Meanwhile, in Delhi, the Union power ministry has asked National Hydro Power Corporation to extend all possible assistance to Sikkim, so that normalcy can be restored all over, particularly the earthquake affected areas near NHPC's 510 mw Teesta Hydel power station and 60 mw Rangit Hydel power station.

Minister of State for Power KC Venugopal held this review meeting on Friday to discuss the Sikkim situation. He asked NHPC to act on a war footing and spare men and machinery to clear roads and carry on with other rehabilitation work.

A decision was also taken to avail of the services of seismic experts from IIT Roorkee, to analyse earthquake data and conduct earthquake impact studies at dam sites of NHPC in the region. Apart from this, an expert team of geologists, engineers and senior executives of NHPC from Delhi were also asked to visit the site and submit a report.

The Power Grid Corporation was instructed to expedite restoration of power. North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) was also asked to compile seismic data collected from its power stations in north eastern states for further analysis at IIT Roorkee.

Himalayan Earthquake Images

SIKKIM EARTHQUAKE VISUALS

Rebuilding Sikkim Again

A rainbow brings cheer to Sikkimese amid pain and sorrow

On Friday morning, the road was cleared up to Toong from Mangan, headquarters of North Sikkim district. Five days after the massive earthquake that struck the region, it came as a big relief to local residents as well as the Army personnel who were engaged in the gargantuan task of clearing the roads.

From Toong, the road bifurcates towards two quake-ravaged destinations, Shipgyre and Chunghthang.

“The real fight starts from here though. What we have done so far will be nothing in comparison to the challenge that lies ahead,” Sanjay Sharma, Commanding Officer of 52 Engineer Regiment of the Army asserted.

The fresh jolt of earthquake late on Thursday has left life here further vulnerable. Just when the residents of North Sikkim district were about to emerge from last Sunday's nightmare to start life afresh, the initiative got paused once again.

Ashok Subba was searching for remnants of his makeshift home at Toong amid rubbles. The house was flattened under tonnes of debris that rolled down the mountain side during the earthquake. One of his relatives was injured.

He suddenly found a packet full of photographs in the wreckage and began showing pictures of his injured relative.

Two girls, Dali Sherpa and Nagpa Diki, were busy loading their belongings on a lorry to shift to a safer place. Dali's mother, Sonu, was waiting for them in Voong Basti under Naga gram panchayat. They have shifted to a rented house here. Sonu was silent throughout. Grief visible in her eyes, she went about making their new home liveable.

Dali, a Class X student, was injured in a massive landslide and still feels pain at the back of her head. Her school closed down after the quake and none knows when it will reopen.

People from Chunghthang, Lachen, Paigong and Lachung continue trekking towards Mangan, braving the treacherous mountain and forest paths to reach to safer places.

Shering, who trekked down from Chunghthang to Toong this morning, said that the Teesta Urja project tunnel is in good shape and he had reached Chungthang by walking through the tunnel.

He went to Chunghthang on Thursday to find his friend who has not communicated since last Sunday.

It started raining while returning to Mangan from Toong. When the rains stopped, a middle-aged woman's happy voice drew my attention. She was calling her son to show the rainbow that had appeared on the horizon.

Maybe it was the first time that a rainbow was visible in North Sikkim after the quake hit the district as it immediately led people to forget all their fear and pain experienced over the past few days and become delighted.

And, needless to say that nature only can do it!

(The Hindu)

Army intensifies rescue operation after Sunday’s killer quake

Trishul broken at ChhaarDhaam,Namchi,Sikkim

The Army and the Border Roads Organisation personnel on Thursday intensified their search and rescue operation at Dzongu, Chungthang and Lachen in Sikkim’s worst-hit North District, which was inaccessible due to debris caused by landslides after Sunday’s killer quake.

The Army and the BRO personnel were busy removing landslides and debris from roads and tunnels to reach the inaccessible remote areas, including seven hamlets in Dzongu, official sources said.

Army personnel involved in the rescue operation at Saffu could not reach the Teesta Urja project site by road, owing to landslides and reached the area through the project tunnels.

Most of the people, including tourists, have been evacuated from Lachen, but there were fresh landslides in the area which, coupled with intermittent rains, made the going difficult for the Army, the sources said.

“We have no idea yet of the condition in villages like Sakyong-Pentong and Bey which were in forest areas beyond Dzongu,” an official said.

The villages in Sikkim are scattered and there is only one major highway connecting Mangan to Dzongu.

Lingza and Bey villages in Upper Dzongu in the North District were reconnected to the outside world for a brief period on Wednesday after remaining cut off for five days, but fresh landslides blocked the road linking the villages to Mangan.

The debris was cleared up to Lingza Falls enabling Army and police personnel to resume their mission to reach food supplies to the marooned people.

From the Lingza Falls they headed onwards the villages on foot.

Local people said some villages like 12 Mile had been completely wiped out.

Power company Teesta Urja on said its under-construction 1,200-MW Teesta State-III hydroelectric project in North District was not much affected by the 6.8 magnitude temblor.

“No section of the tunnels of project works, at Saffu or at any other location on the site, is flooded or has collapsed,” the company said in a statement in New Delhi.