Sikkim flash flood update

53 killed , 27 bodies found in teesta river.

Over the past three days, tragic flash floods in Sikkim have claimed the lives of at least 53 individuals, which includes seven soldiers. Additionally, 27 more deceased individuals were discovered in the Teesta river bed in the neighboring state of West Bengal, with seven of them having been identified.

Here are 10 points to understand this incident.

1. Over 140 people are still missing, and thousands had to leave their homes. The Sikkim government says that 1,173 houses got seriously damaged, and they rescued 2,413 people. All the bridges downstream of the Teesta-V hydropower station are underwater or destroyed, making it hard to reach North Sikkim.

2. Sikkim's Chief Minister, Prem Singh Tamang, led a crucial meeting yesterday to plan rescue, aid, and recovery efforts. Their top focus is on restoring road access to Chungthang, and they'll work on the Naga to Toong road once they have the necessary land. Families of the victims will receive ₹4 lakh as compensation.

3. In Sikkim, they really want to fix the road to Chungthang and might build a new one from Naga to Toong if they have the land. People from different departments met with the Chief Secretary all day to talk about roads, helping people, and rescuing folks.

4. The weather experts at the India Meteorological Department (IMD) expect some light to medium rain in most areas of Mangan district for the next five days. In Lachen and Lachung, the skies will mostly be cloudy or overcast. This weather might make it difficult to use helicopters to rescue more than 3,000 tourists who are stuck.

5. The Indian Air Force (IAF) tried to rescue and help people using Mi-17 helicopters, but for the last two days, they couldn't do it because of bad weather. The sky was cloudy, and it was hard to see well in the Lachen and Lachung valleys. They plan to try again in the morning if the weather gets better.

6. Heavy rains and sudden floods have caused a lot of damage in the northeastern state. More than 25,000 people are affected, and nearly 1,200 homes have been damaged. Thirteen bridges have been destroyed. Rescue teams have helped 2,413 people, but 6,875 people are still away from their homes. They're staying in 22 relief camps because the state is mostly isolated from the rest of the country.

7. A flood happened when a glacial lake burst, and water was let out from the Chungthang Dam. This made the Teesta River rise a lot on Wednesday morning and caused a lot of destruction in the beautiful Himalayan state.

8. The Chief Minister, Mr. Tamang, said that the roads connecting the districts are blocked, and the bridges got washed away. Communication in North Sikkim is in trouble. He blamed the previous state governments for building the Chungthang Dam poorly, which caused this damage.

9. On Friday, it was revealed that a Parliamentary Committee raised concerns about a significant shortage of weather and monitoring stations in the Himalayan regions. In March, during a Parliament session, it was disclosed that Sikkim has 694 glacial lakes but only eight flood forecasting stations. Out of these, three are for monitoring water levels, and five are for tracking inflows.

10. Amit Shah, the Home Minister, has approved releasing ₹44.8 crore early from the central disaster fund to assist flood-affected people. The Home Ministry has also set up a team to assess the damage.