Toll in Darjeeling Landslide Rises to 21
Death toll in landslides on Wednesday has rose to 21 with recovery of five more bodies from the debris by army rescuers. The landslides occurred following torrential rains of Aila in Darjeeling. The hill areas remained cut off from the plains for the second day.
Additional District Magistrate (General) P Zimba said that personnel of the 123 Mountain Brigade who began rescue operations last evening searched the landslide-affected areas and recovered the bodies,
Two disaster management teams of BSF arrived in the morning and began clearing mud and rocks blocking the arterial Hill Cart Road connecting Darjeeling and Siliguri as also the Pankhabari Road, he added.
According to him, around a hundred houses were damaged by the landslides.
The ADM said that electricity was partially restored and there was no immediate shortage of relief materials.
According to Gorkha Janmukhti Morcha (GJM) General Secretary, Roshan Giri, nearly 2,000 GJM members were engaged in the relief operations.
Newly-elected BJP MP, Jaswant Singh, in a statement urged the West Bengal government to help and send disaster management teams to Darjeeling.
