Traffic movement on the entire stretch of NH10 — the lifeline of the Himalayan state of Sikkim and the hill district of Kalimpong — resumed on Wednesday after a gap of three days after Sunday's cave-in at Swetijhora.

“We restored traffic movement on NH10 around 10.40am today (Wednesday), after doing the necessary repairs at the damaged portion of the highway at Swetijhora. Under the orders of Kalimpong district administration, we are allowing the movement of vehicles in a single file through the area,” said Subodh Chhetri, the executive engineer of the state PWD NH-X division, engaged in the repairs of this crucial stretch.

On Sunday morning, traffic on the route, which connects these areas with Siliguri and the rest of the country, stopped as a 20-metre-long stretch of the road had caved in at Swetijhora, which is around 35km from here, amid incessant rainfall. The bitumen cover, along with earth and stones underneath, was washed away, causing a deep crater on the highway stretch.

The administration immediately stopped traffic on the route. Vehicles bound for Siliguri from Sikkim and Kalimpong and vice-versa had to take detours. As a result, it took around six hours to reach Kalimpong and close to eight hours to reach Gangtok via road during these days, around double the usual time.

Toy trains

The Northeast Frontier Railway has announced that due to operational constraints, the New Jalpaiguri-Darjeeling AC passenger that used to run every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, will remain cancelled from October 2 to January 1, 2024.

Also, Darjeeling-New Jalpaiguri AC passenger that would run on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, will not run from October 3 till January 2, 2024.