PHOTOS: Sikkim Rescue Operations by Indian Army

The clear skies on bright and sunny tuesday saw Army resume helicopter sorties between North Sikkim and Gangtok,Bagdogra. The Army also plans to use Pakyong Airport for bigger and heavier helicopter operations.The Indian Army has won hearts of people across Sikkim for its sheer dedication and determination to reach out and help in every way possible to Quake hit victims .

Helicopter sorties with relief to earthquake-affected areas due to incessant rain

Gangtok: Helicopter sorties with relief to earthquake-affected areas which resumed Sunday after a two-day gap were again suspended due to incessant rain on Monday.

A senior Army official said that nine Army helicopters were engaged yesterday in the relief operation dropping ration and evacuating stranded people from different parts of North Sikkim. He said that on the state’s request, the Army has released 3,000 litres of kerosene to Chungthang and 2,000 litres of kerosene to Lachung.

The Army has also opened seven relief camps at Chungthang where most people living in villages surrounding the sub-divisional town have arrived. Prem Subba, who came down from Thangu, which is beyond Lachen, said most of the residents have abandoned their houses fearing they might crumble anytime after suffering structural damage in the earthquake.

Sonam, also from Thangu, said most people were sleeping in tents at the camps.

Meena Rai and her entire family of five are also residing in the relief camp opened at the Gurudwara having come down from a nearby village.

Chungthang has also experienced a large influx of labourers who are not just employed with the hydel project here, but also those from road and other construction projects further north.

They have been trekking down to Chungthang for the last couple of days and are awaiting helicopter evacuation. Despite many labourers having been evacuated, there are still around 400 of them stranded there, still desperately trying to get a ride back home in one of the choppers.

There has been a mass exodus of labourers also from places above Chungthang, as far north as Dombang where a road construction company is engaged in the construction of a road from Dombang to Gora La.

Balwant Rai and Sushil Singh, both from Benaras, said that the military and labour camp up there had been totally destroyed. However, 200-odd labourers survived and managed to escape and take a three-day trek down to Chungthang. In many ways the Ground Zero of the devastating earthquake, Chungthang is by far the worst affected town which has suffered a trail of devastation and destruction left by the earthquakes.

As many as 13 deaths have taken place there alone, many are missing and almost all houses and structures have been damaged. With most structures rendered unsafe and residents still insecure about returning to even houses which have suffered only minor damage, most are still sleeping in the camps and open spaces, a week since the calamity.

The Chungthang SDM office has conducted a preliminary investigation of the damages in and around Chungthang though there has not been enough time for a detailed examination yet.

The preliminary report suggests that 90 houses in Chungthang have been totally damaged. The town has about 120 households. Of the 90 totally damaged houses, 25 are stated to be uninhabitable.

Though there is death and destruction everywhere, the sub-divisional office is functioning thanks to 12 sets of WLL phones and one satellite phone provided by the BSNL.

BDO Samdup Bhutia said, “our priority was to evacuate the injured and tourists followed by women and children and finally the elderly.”

A total of seven relief camps have been set up here by the administration which are managed with the help of local people.

A task force has also been set up comprising local panchayat members, district officials, officials from private companies, local people, the Army as well as other agencies aiding the relief and rehabilitation efforts

FIRST VISUALS: Lachen After Earthquake



People praying at Lachen Monastery



IGP [Law & Order] SD Negi meets Lachenpas outside the monastery at Lachen. The IGP flew into Lachen on Sunday after three frustrating days of aborted flights due to inclement weather. All Lachenpas are safe and no one injured although buildings have taken a bad hit.

 GANGTOK, 26 Sept: IGP SD Negi, landed at Lachen today, establishing face-to-face contact with the cut-off village in North Sikkim. While there had been much heartburn because no official statement had been issued yet on the situation at Lachen, it was confirmed today that this North district town has come out of the 18 Sept earthquake unscathed in as much as no casualties are reported from there even as 18 houses have been substantially damaged here and other structures have suffered damage as well.
The IG spent around half an hour conferring with the people at Lachen at the monastery where everyone has gathered and where special prayers were being held today.
(Now Daily)

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.

VIDEO: Hydro Power Project Workers Flee North Sikkim After Earthquake

MLA PS Tamang tours North Sikkim

GANGTOK, 25 Sept: A team headed by SDF’s Upper Burtuk MLA, PS Tamang, visited North District yesterday, reaching medical aid and other relief kits to the Mangan bazaar Relief Camp, Mangan Hospital, Naga Toong Relief Camp and Lingza in Dzongu, a press release informs.
The team had to cancel their trip onwards to Chungthang, Lachen and Lachung because the helicopter was not available, informs a press release issued by Mr. Tamang.
“It is sad that even after 5 days of the tragic incident, the much-needed rescue works have not been delivered to the affected areas of North,” alleges the release.
Mr. Tamang has questioned the government’s ability to handle the situation and contended that the people are doubting the effectiveness of the government’s Disaster Management Cell.
He has also questioned the failure of any authority to provide a proper account about the fate of labourers employed in hydel power projects.
“That the public is losing its faith in government is becoming evident from the fact that the public had to manage the relief on their own even at such time of adversity,” he alleges further.
Mr. Tamang has expressed hope that the state and the central governments will work together to ensure a more secure future for the people here.
The MLA has also expressed his gratitude towards various organizations like the Indian Army, State government, Sikkim Police, ITBP, SAP, State Disaster Management Cell, state and national media and those who have been engaged in relief and rescue works.
On behalf of all the public of Sikkim, Mr. Tamang has further thanked the Union Home Minister, P Chidambaram, Congress general secretary, Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee for visiting Sikkim and taking a firsthand account of the tragedy here.
The MLA has also conveyed his deepest condolences towards those have suffered in the earthquake and has appealed to the public to stay united and tide over this traumatic phase



Lachung in North Sikkim after Earthquake

 GANGTOK, 25 Sept: Sub Divisional Megistrate, Chungthang, Tashi Chopel, the senior-most Sikkim State Government official at the devastatingly hit North Sikkim town, has a large beat to cover, covering the entire stretch north of Chungthang.
He was in station on the evening of 18 September when the earthquake struck, damaging more than 80% of the structures there leaving 12 dead and many injured. This has been the worst hit town of the State and the officer has had his hands full, his task starting immediately last Sunday with handling the rescue of people trapped in a collapsed building there. He has had to look out for the more than 2,000 people living in Chungthang will still coordinating efforts to reach relief to affected areas in the sub-division.
All roads to Chungthang, from every side is cut off but helicopter flights have finally stabilised. As the situation settles down to some extent in Chungthang, with the relief measures organised, the SDM today left for Lachung.
Inclement weather made helicopter sorties impossible, and with rumours spreading panic and confusion and to assure residents in Lachung that the administration was genuinely concerned for them, Mr. Chopel walked it to Lachung today.
Lachung is 22 kms from Chungthang, but the road is littered with landslides so big that officials are not even wagering a guess on by when it will be cleared for traffic. Mr. Chopel obviously took the risk as much to make a first-hand appraisal of the situation there as to reassure residents that concern for their welfare was genuine.
Meanwhile officials in Gangtok announced today that two Medical Officers each were being flown to the Primary Health Sub-Centres at Lachen and Lachung in Army helicopters on Sunday.

North Sikkim after earthquake photos

AFTER EARTHQUAKE PHOTOS OF NORTH SIKKIM

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.

Anger over 'lethargic response' to India Sikkim quake

In parts of the earthquake-hit Indian state of Sikkim, conditions on the ground are little short of apocalyptic.

Entire areas are cut off because of landslides - and more often than not people are without clean water, adequate food supplies, medicine and telephone contact with the outside world.

Sikkim's hospitals have seldom been so full.

With local people bereft of help, it is hardly surprising that this disaster has created some resentment among them.

I experienced this overwhelming sense of frustration near Mangan - the epicentre of Sunday's quake - when a group of villagers stopped my car and demanded an explanation.

"Why are reporters focusing on the good work by the government, while no aid has reached any of the villages?" one of them angrily demanded.

Such was the angst of villagers that they seized my equipment and only returned it only after extracting a promise from me that I would report the "real story".

One of them, Rasi Tobgay, spoke for many when describing the destruction on the ground and the suffering of local people.

"It is impossible to take the seriously injured to the hospital because army helicopters are hovering with ministers in the sky," he said.

'Inactive' authorities

The villagers say little aid has been delivered beyond Mangan, although food packets have been air-dropped intermittently by the Indian air force.

It is estimated that about 100,000 houses have been damaged Chungthang is in the southern end of north Sikkim and it is in this area that the quake has been the most catastrophic.

Hardly any parts of north Sikkim, connecting India to Tibetan plateau, have received any substantial aid since Sunday.

Action Aid spokeswoman Banamallika Choudhury - who has reached Chungthang - told the BBC that there have been no more than one or two daily helicopter sorties.

"Two helicopters can carry no more than three or four tonnes of food or medical supplies - and that is nothing for thousands of villagers," she said.

Ms Choudhury says that apart from rescuing a handful of tourists, the authorities have remained largely "inactive" in the face of a huge humanitarian disaster.

"The roads are still cut off, there is no supply of electricity or telephone connectivity and the villagers have to arrange for the rebuilding of houses while providing first aid to the injured," she said.

Continue reading the main story
“Conditions are going from bad to worse as more patients arrive for treatment having walked from distant villages to Gangtok” Doctor in Gangtok
Ms Choudhury says that local people "harassed" journalists who arrived in Chungthang on Wednesday night because they believe that the media has unthinkingly projected only the government's side of the story.
So has the response of the authorities been inadequate? Whatever the answer, there is no doubt they face numerous formidable challenges.

Principal among these are landslides, still taking place on a regular basis because of the quake and because recent heavy rainfall has loosened much of the mountainous land mass.

The state government may be stating the obvious when it reiterates that aid cannot get through while roads remained blocked, but it remains a valid point.

One such post-quake landslide recently washed away several houses in Jaangu area, close to Chungthang.

"We are still counting the casualties," Sikkim government spokesman KS Tobgay told the BBC.

Bombarded by boulders

While the main road link connecting Sikkim to mainland India - national highway 31A - has reopened with a disturbed traffic flow, Border Roads Organisation (BRO) employees say that the task of clearing the highways is not getting any easier.
Relief is being delivered, but critics say it is too little, too late "We are working around the clock but even then traffic movement remains disrupted," BRP spokesman Rajaram Pal told me.

He said that the loosening of the land mass meant that no sooner had the highway been "cleaned" than more rocks and trees would fall down on top of it from the surrounding mountains.

One such landslide killed at least 17 workers in a hydropower plant in Chungthang, with employees literally bombarded by falling boulders.

The Sikkim government has admitted that the situation in north Sikkim is worrying and "no solution is in sight in the immediate future".

Mr Tobgay says that while "roads are being totally washed away" in and around Chungthang, it will take time to re-establish communication links.

In the meantime government officials at the forefront of the relief effort have been left with no option other than to trek 30-40km (18-24 miles) to reach places like Chungthang, Lachen, Lachung and Thangu valley, all close to India's border with Tibet.

So while the government relief effort is getting off the ground - with aid workers, doctors and disaster management teams being air-dropped in some areas - the numbers are small and the need is great.

On Wednesday there were 18 helicopter sorties that carried about 40 tonnes of food packets and medical supplies.

"That by no standard is adequate for hundreds of thousands of people," a government official said.

Meanwhile in the state capital Gangtok water supplies are becoming increasingly irregular. The state government has announced that water will only be supplied on alternate days in municipal areas.

If poor sanitation and water-borne diseases become problems, hospitals in the city are already flooded with patients, most with broken limbs.

"Conditions are going from bad to worse as more patients arrive for treatment, having walked from distant villages to Gangtok," one doctor in the city told me.

With no hope in sight for the beleaguered inhabitants of north Sikkim, the Indian home minister is visited Gangtok "to take stock of the situation".

He does not need a team of advisers to realise that the state is facing its worst crisis in recent years and that the under-powered relief effort now needs to move into top gear.

BBC

No trace of 120 people at a North Sikkim village

TUNG (NORTH SIKKIM): There is still no trace of 120 residents of Bay village in North Sikkim, located between Lachung and Chungthang, after Sunday's powerful quake even as a flash flood at Lachung poses a fresh threat of landslides.

"We find no trace as yet of 120 people living in 14 huts at Bay village as the area is totally devastated. There is a lot of debris ... and the residents have gone missing," National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team in-charge Nisith Upadhyay said.

He said four NDRF teams have fanned out to worst-hit Lingu, Sakyang, Pentong and Bay villages in North Sikkim which have been rendered almost inaccessible after the quake.

"We are afraid some bodies may have been trapped under the flattened houses as boulders are lying strewn all over," he added.

According to SR Bhutia, deputy director of horticultural society of Sikkim, who led the four teams, "we haven't found any person in the village. We are searching for them."

Meanwhile, a flash flood at Lachung Chu river has posed a threat of fresh landslides at Lachung, one of the worst-hit by the quake, according to a Geological Survey of India officer.

"The flash flood will loosen the soil and may trigger fresh landslides in the area," the GSI's Sikkim zone officer said.

Forty personnel of the Reserve Army Engineering regiment were working round-the-clock to clear the National Sikkim Highway blocked by landslides.

Army rescuers gained further access to quake-hit areas with the removal of debris collected on the 70-km Gangtok-Mangan road following the temblor for another 15 KM upto Tung.

Army sources said it would take 10 to 12 days more to reach the affected villages after removing the rocks and boulders blocking the road.

A portion of an entire hill had tumbled down on the highway which leads to the Tibet border.

Personnel of the Army's engineering regiment have been exploding dynamites to remove the huge boulders that came hurtling down on the highway.

Road connectivity with Chungthang, Lachung and Lachen has not yet been established.

Quake Toll Rises

Seven more bodies were found in the quake rubble, taking the death toll in the calamity in Sikkim to 119 as rescuers on Wednesday struggled to reach the devastated areas where “heavy casualties” were feared.

Official sources said six bodies were found in East Sikkim and one in North Sikkim, where the 6.8 magnitude temblor was epicentred.

Fresh landslides triggered by heavy rains were reported in the worst-affected areas of Mangan, Lachung, Lachen and Sighthan areas of North Sikkim last night.

The landslides and landslips along the 60 km stretch between Gangtok and Mangan along NH31A, the lifeline of the mountain state, was affecting rescue operations in the higher reaches in the mountains, army sources said.

Army sources said a 8-10 km stretch at Tung, which is 16 km off Mangan, had caved in impeding rescue operators from reaching worst-hit Chungthang.

Sikkim Director General of Police Jasbir Singh said Border Road Organisation personnel were deployed to clear the highway.

High casualties feared

District collectors have been asked to reach Mangan, Lachen, Lachung and Chungthan, rendered inaccessible by the landslides, immediately by air as more bodies are feared to be trapped in under quake debris.

“Heavy casualties are feared in these areas,” he said.

Indian Air Force continued recces in North Sikkim, where relief material was airdropped on Tuesday.

Pictures: Sikkim earthquake epicentre, Mangan 54 km from Gangtok

The Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya North Sikkim honour its students

Gangtok: 13th June:The Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV), Shelapthang, Phodong, NorthSikkim,
Government of India has recorded first class in CBSE Board examination 2011 with standard percentage. Today the school organizeda grand felicitation programme for CBSE topper students, school level
topper students and dedicated teachers.
The programme was organized by JNV, Phodong and was attended by DC (N) cum Chairman JNV, TN Kazi as Chief Guest, coordinated by Joint Director, HRDD headquarter, Ugen Lepcha and was also attended by Panchayat Secretary Chungthang, Lhendup Lepcha, the BRC Kabi, PN Pradhan, Principal JNV, T Gopalakrishna, Programme coordinator, PK Niraula, local area Panchayats, teachers, local gentries and students.
The function started with lighting of lamp by guests and Saraswati Vandana presented by the students followed by the welcome speech being presented by SO Humney, SMT, JNV. A colorful cultural programme was also presented by the students as part of the programme.

The function had the felicitation of CBSE class XII toppers, Sanjay Thakur, Tenzing Choden Bhutia and Suren Biswakarma. The CBSE class X toppers, Passangkit Sherpa and Aishwarya K Pillai and the school also felicitated school level class wise topper students and all the dedicated teachers. Student Nim Tshering Lepcha was felicitated with best disciplined student of the school sponsored by guests and Guru Shresta
Award was handed over to few of the teachers for 2009-2010 sessions.The Principal JNV Phodong, in his address said that, the school is in mood of celebration for good efforts made for academic year and
teachers have fully generated the school strength in quality education and extra curriculum. JNV Phodong is moving smoothly to provide good education and it’s a revolution for coming generation, they are always
ready to cater service with public cooperation and blessing. At the end, he quoted Swami Vivekananda ''In a day, when you don’t come across and problems, you can be sure that you are traveling in a wrong path''. So, problems are to experience to get success and we must face it with full zest.The Chief Guest, in his address, heartily congratulated topper students and entire school staff for excellent status which had made a great
pride for whole North District. The DC also said that, the school should stay tuned in same manner and out going students should achieve their goals with disciplined manner and positive thoughts as well.The JD, HRDD Headquarter, also congratulated the entire school and urged the students and teachers to keep up the same zeal and zest in balance for good reputation. The programme ended with National Anthem and Vote of thanks by Ms Geeta, teacher JNV Phodong

(SikkimMail)

Sikkim to Fine Tourists for plastic dump on Mountains

Gangtok, June 10: Tourists who leave behind empty food packets and plastic water bottles while visiting high-altitude areas of North Sikkim would be fined by the local governing body of Lachung village from now on.
Members of the Lachung Dzumsa have said a minimum of Rs 1,000 will be charged if a visitor is seen throwing waste in these tourist hotspots.

Dzumsa is an age-old system of governance practised in Lachen and Lachung villages and is protected under the Sikkim Panchayat Act 1995.

The governing body is headed by two pipons (headman) elected by the villagers for a period of one year.

“We have formed a committee to keep our tourism destinations clean. The committee will be divided into groups for Lachung, Yumthang Valley and Yume Samdong. They will be submitting monthly reports to us. Those tourists and drivers who discard wastes without keeping in mind the purity of tourism areas will be fined a minimum amount of Rs 1,000,” said Lachung pipon Tendup Lachungpa.

Starting from Chungthang, the Dzumsa jurisdiction extends up to Yumthang Valley (24km from Lachung) and Yume Samdong (50km from Lachung) in North Sikkim.

Around 250 tourist vehicles visit Lachung, 119km from Gangtok, every day during the peak season in summer.

Besides Lachung the other tourist hotspots in the area include the Yumthang Valley (11,800 feet) and Yume Samdong (15,300 feet).

Lachung is at 8,700 feet. Most of the places are strewn with empty chips and noodle packets, juice tetra packs and mineral water bottles.

“We have ordered those running tea and snack stalls at Yumthang Valley and Yume Samdong to form committees and collect and dispose the garbage. Biodegradable garbage will be disposed by them and non-biodegradable items will be sent to Gangtok where we will be teaming up with the forest and urban development departments for their disposal,” said another pipon of Lachung, C. Namgyal Lachungpa.

The Lachung pipons have requested the taxi drivers visiting the areas from Gangtok to take non-biodegradable trash collected from Yumthang Valley and Yume Samdong and take them back to the state capital.

“The taxi drivers have been asked to brief their passengers so that they don’t litter around or leave empty chip and food packets and mineral water plastic bottles behind. Drivers have been told that they should not do drunken or rash driving or smoke cigarettes once they cross Chungthang and enter the Lachung Dzumsa territory. We want our tourists to feel safe once they enter Lachung,” said the adviser to Travel Agents’ Association of Sikkim, Palzor Lachungpa.

World Environment Day in North Sikkim by WWF-India

GANGTOK, 03 June: WWF-India has been working towards biodiversity conservation through participation of the local communities in the state for more than ten years. One of its main focus has been the conservation of high altitude wetlands in the state, fragile environments providing multiple benefits including water security, refuge for wildlife and tourist attractions.

Following a conservation model implemented in Tsomgo with conservation issues monitored by the Pokhari Sanrakshan Samity there, focus has also been given to Gurudongmar, one of the highest lakes in the world and a major tourist destination in North Sikkim. Conservation plans have been worked out in collaboration with local governance institutions like the Lachen Dzumsa, organizations like the Lachen Tourism Development Committee to ensure effective protection to the fragile high altitude environment of the lake while continuing sustainable tourism practices.

As part of the ongoing conservation activities in Lachen and Gurudongmar, WWF-India Khangchendzonga Landscape Programme, in association with Lachen Tourism Development Committee, is organizing a two-day celebration of World Environment Day, 2011 on 04 and 05 June at Lachen and Gurudongmar as part of its High Altitude Wetlands conservation Project in Sikkim.

The major activities include a garbage cleaning drive planned for Lachen on 04 June. This will be followed by a second drive at Gurudongmar on the occasion of World Environment Day on 05 June, again with participation from WWF, LTDC and Lachen Dzumsa.

It is hoped that these drives will generate major awareness regarding sustainable management of waste in two of the major tourist attractions in the state.

Two notice boards providing information on Gurudongmar and Do’s and Don’ts for the visitors will also be put up near the lake on the day. In recent years, the influx of tourists has increased manifold in Gurudongmar and while the cold desert environment restricts many anthropogenic activities with potential to cause disturbances, management of waste and ensuring that the lake environs are clean is a major issue. Dustbins aimed at proper management of wastes will also be distributed for placing at strategic locations in Lachen as part of the programme

West Bengal Tourists after state elections rush to North Sikkim

MANGAN, 26 May: There has been a considerable increase in the number of tourists arriving in North District now that the election process is over in West Bengal. 90% of the tourists who visit Sikkim come especially for the charms of Yumthang valley and Gurudongmar lake in the North district. As per records at Rang-Rang Check Post, tourist vehicles plying to North Sikkim is usually between 250 to 300 per day. This week saw a record jump to 350 to 400 vehicles per day.
Tourists, usually opt for packages of two nights/three days and one night/two days for North Sikkim. In the two nights/three days package, tourists visit Gurudongmar on the second day spending the night at Lachen and visit Yumthang and Katau on the third day, spending the night at Lachung. Some tourists also halt at Chungthang and Mangan on their way back.
North Sikkim presents the very quintessence of beauty in Sikkim. Northern Sikkim is the area where the mountain tops seem to touch the sky. Many passes, valleys and waterfalls as well as mountain springs add to the beauty of the region. North Sikkim tourism presents the visitors with an experience that is absolutely unique. Largely a restricted area, a special permit is needed to visit most parts of this northernmost district of Sikkim.

North Sikkim Towns

Mangan is the biggest of the North Sikkim cities where the district headquarters of the North Sikkim district are established. Mangan, despite being an administrative city, is noted for its picturesque character. Located about 4000 feet above sea level, this town is at a distance of 65 km uphill from the state capital of Gangtok. The other important town of North Sikkim is Chungthang. It shares the picturesque quality of all North Sikkim areas.

Tourist Spots of North SikkimNorth Sikkim district is noted as a popular tourist destination. A large area of North Sikkim shares its border with China and therefore is a politically sensitive zone. Many places of this region cannot be reached without a special permit from the government of Sikkim. Usually, conducted tours organized by the various tourist agencies with their bases largely in Gangtok, is the best way to travel in North Sikkim. The Thangu, Nathula Pass tour is one of the most famous tourist circuit; as is the Lachung, Yumthung, Yumesamdong circuit. Other significant tourist attractions of North Sikkim are Lachen, Phodong and Singhik.

The tourist season in North District starts from the month of April when the Rhododendron trees at Yumthang are in bloom. They also visit the Shiv Mandir above Yumthang and Katau to enjoy the beauty of snow. Apart from these, tourists also get to enjoy, Seven Sister Falls near Phensong, Mt. Sinolchu View Point from Pakshek Mangan etc., on the way.

(Now Daily)

Flashflood washes away equipments from Dikchu Hydro Power Site in Sikkim

DIKCHU, 02 May: Equipment worth Rs. 1.50 crore was washed away from a hydel project site on the Dikchu khola here on Sunday when the hill stream broke its banks following heavy rainfall in its catchment area on the higher reaches. Water level at Dikchu khola [which starts from the confluence of Baghca and Ratey Chu higher up] surged late in the afternoon and washed away the temporary bridge thrown across it to the Dickhu Hydro-Electric Project site. It started raining at around 3 p.m., and was at its most destructive at 6 p.m. Apart from the washed away bridge, the raging river also swept away equipment from the site and trapped one person on the far bank. He was rescued from his predicament early Monday morning.

Nar Bahadur Pradhan of Lower Rakdong was stranded to the far bank of the river on the northern side all of last night after the bridge was washed away at around 6 in the evening.

AS word spread of Dikchu khola in spate, people who rushed to the spot witnessed heavy equipment being carried away by the khola, which this morning, after the flood waters had subsided, appeared misleadingly tame. Only the wreckage of a truck, stuck in the shallow waters, standing evidence of the fury with which the stream had broken out last evening.
As for Nar Bahadur Pradhan, who had crossed over to collect fodder for his cattle, he was struck throughout the night with a sheer cliff behind him and a raging Dikchu khola in front. There was no alternate escape for him, and after the waters had subsided a bit towards nightfall, his relatives and fellow villagers used ropes to reach him some refreshments.

“This could have ended in a tragedy for me. I was relieved when stars shone through the clear night sky. If it had continued raining, my situation would have been much worse,” he said, after reaching to the safety of the left bank at around 9 a.m. on Monday.

The timing of the suspected cloud-burst which caused Sunday evening’s damage is propitious for the project developers, coming as it did on Labour Day, when no work was underway at the project site and no workers on duty. Had work been underway full-swing at the site, the toll would have been much worse than just the equipment lost.
That said, even the equipment loss has been substantial. The list goes something like this: one Aliva short kit machine, three Jackhammers, several hume pipes, connected air pipes, and water pipes. Excavator machines and a boomer machine were also washed away but are stuck in the river bed and can be recovered. The flood-waters also swept away the retaining wall in front of Cable Access Tunnel (CAT).
The equipment belongs to Drillcon Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, a sub-contractor of Sneha Kinetic Power Project Ltd. which is developing the 96MW Dikchu HEP.
Upon hearing of the flash-flood, ward panchayat, Lower Rakdong, BB Gurung, police personnel from Dikchu Out-Post and Phidang Check Post from North Sikkim rushed to the spot along with representatives from the SKPPL and Drillcon.
The Drillcon Project Manager, while speaking to NOW! informed that it will take at least one week, weather permitting, before work can resume at the project site.