Sikkim cut off after landslide damages highway

SILIGURI - Sikkim was cut off from the rest of India Thursday after a landslide washed away 40 feet of the National Highway 31A, considered the lifeline of the Himalayan state, in West Bengal’s Darjeeling district.

The landslide occurred Thursday afternoon near the 42nd km marker under Kalimpong police station following intermittent rainfall in the hills for the last couple of days, a district police officer said.

National Highway 31A, connecting Sikkim with Siliguri and Kalimpong, is the Himalayan state’s only gateway to the outside world.

Following the landslide, vehicle movement came to a halt on the highway, causing a huge traffic snarl.

Personnel of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) have started repair work. A police picket has also been set up at the spot, the officer said.