Sikkim Landslides: Over 1,000 Tourists Stranded in Lachen and Lachung; 1,500 Rescued Amid Travel Permit Suspension

Sikkim Landslides: About 1,000 tourists continue to remain stranded in Lachen and Lachung, two high-altitude hill stations in north Sikkim, due to landslides in the area since Thursday, said a senior district police officer on Friday.

According to Mangan SP Sonam Detchu Bhutia, those 1,500 other tourists whose vehicles were stranded on the road due to landslides were accommodated in the nearby villages Thursday night and were rescued on Friday. They were accommodated in police stations, gurudwaras, Indo-Tibetan Border Police camps, and some cases were even taken in by local villagers.

“They were taken out on Friday morning and have already left for Gangtok,” Bhutia told HT.

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As specified by the district police chief, due to heavy and continuous rain from Thursday afternoon, landslides have affected roads in various locations near Munshithang on the route to Lachen from Chungthang and near Lima on the Lachung route from Chungthang.

Heavy downpours began on Thursday, stranding tourists in Lachen and Lachung, said a senior district official.

The official continued to say that all travel permits for north Sikkim have been canceled today, including those already issued in advance, owing to road conditions. The district administration has also asked all tour operators to refrain from sending tourists to north Sikkim under any circumstance until the situation improves.

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According to an official report received on Thursday night, terrible landslides have happened at Munshithang along the Lachen-Chungthang road and at Lema/Bob on the Lachung-Chungthang stretch.

Lachen was one of the worst-hit regions in Sikkim during the October 2023 Glacial Lake Outburst Flood, which left it disconnected for almost one and a half years. Therefore, it opened to tourists only this year from March.

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