Heavy rain cuts off highway linking Gangtok, floods North Bengal areas

Torrential rains pounded the tiny Himalayan state of Sikkim and the tea growing region of North Bengal, causing landslides that cut off National Highway-10, the main road linking Gangtok with the rest of the country.

Normal life came to a near standstill as showers triggered landslides causing damages to roads and bridges, halting or constricting traffic in various places in North Bengal’s hill districts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong, while low-lying areas in the plains of Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar districts were flooded, officials said on Wednesday.

Hundreds of tourists, who have thronged the hills during the Durga Puja season, are facing difficulties in travelling to their next destination or reaching railway stations or the Bagdogra airport to return home, owing to the incessant rain and landslides.