Mangan (Sikkim) [India] June 2 (ANI): The Tourism and Civil Aviation Department of Sikkim announced on Monday that the Chungthang-Phidang road in Mangan District has been restored, allowing for the safe evacuation of stranded tourists to commence.

The evacuation operation is being carried out under the close supervision of the District Police and Administration, with active involvement from various agencies, including the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Indian Army, Border Roads Organisation (BRO), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF), Fire and Medical Teams, Travel Agents Association of Sikkim (TAAS), Indian Himalayan Centre for Adventure and Eco-tourism (IHCAE) Chemchey, Driver Association, along with the support of local volunteers and others.

Meanwhile, a search and rescue operation is still underway for nine tourists who went missing after a tragic vehicle accident in the Mangan District on May 29.

On Sunday, Mangan district Superintendent of Police Dechu Bhutia said that over a thousand tourists were stranded in Lachen and Lachung in Mangan District due to the rains inducing landslides, bridge collapse and damage along with a high rise of the River Teesta.

He said the evacuation process had to be delayed due to the landslide on Friday in Shipgyer in Upper Dozongu. The Mangan SP assured that the evacuation of tourists will be carried out on Monday. Further, damages to the base of the Phidang bridge have restricted vehicular movement to the Dzongu constituency. The GREF carried out the restoration work on Sunday, allowing residents and a few emergency service vehicles to commute on foot.

Multiple tourists are also reported missing, he said, 'Our teams are working to locate them. The vehicle was visible two days prior, but now with the rising river level, the vehicle cannot be located... We could locate a few mobile phones and identity cards, which we kept in the police station, but no trace of the missing individuals. Something like a dead body was visible. The body is at such a location in the cliff that we could not see it either through the u or by crossing the river with a lifeboat.'

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on May 30 that as the depression over Bangladesh is likely to move nearly north-northeastwards and weaken into a well-marked low-pressure area during the next 12 hours, warning of very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall to continue in various regions. For the next few days, IMD has forecast that rains will likely occur in most northeast regions on June 5, with no significant change in maximum temperature in various areas. (ANI)