GANGTOK: Sikkim’s Sokpay village in Gangtok was hit a landslide in the wee hours of Sunday.
The landslide caused massive damage to the National Highway along the Dikchu-Rakdong Road.
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As per reports, four houses were completely damaged and 18 families were affected due to the landslide.
The local administration has evacuated around 15-20 families living around the two damaged houses.
As many as four livestock were lost in the landslide.
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However, no casualties were reported.
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Gangtok District Magistrate Tushar Nikhare and other concerned officials from Gangtok District surveyed the site area on Sunday afternoon.
Two house owners, whose houses were completely damaged were provided with a relief of Rs 1,30,000; a cow owner was given Rs 40,500 and a tenant, whose shop was damaged was provided Rs 25,000, informed the official.
A nearby Animal Husbandry office was also damaged by the slide, which according to a Neopaney was inaugurated in 2022.
The landslide occured around 2:30 am to 3 am.
According to local residents, many surveys have been conducted by the officials in the past and they suggested relocating to a safer area.
Meanwhile, the local administration is assessing the loss caused due to the landslide.
The highway connects to North Sikkim, and now with the slide an alternative road from nearby Samdong village is commutable.
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Public Health Engineering officials have surveyed the damage and have initiated actions to open the road connectivity.
The clearance could take 2-3 days as the size of boulders are very big, but for people to walk, a pathway will be carved from the slide.