Darjeeling/Kalimpong (West Bengal): A 59-year-old man died after his house in West Bengal's Darjeeling collapsed due to landslide on Friday, police said.
The incident took place in Danda village of Patabung in the Takbar block of Darjeeling. According to the police, the sudden landslide followed by the incessant rainfall led to the collapse. The deceased has been identified as Babulal Rai, a resident of Patabung area in Darjeeling.
Similar landslides occurred at several places along the National Highway-10 in Kalimpong and traffic was halted for sometime, police said. As a precautionary measure, local people have been shifted from many houses in the hills to safer places.
Meanwhile, the water level of Teesta River has increased due to the rains. Some places were submerged after the river water overflowed and entered the national highway. The disaster response team has started rescue operations in places submerged by Teesta water. Heavy rainfall has lashed the state since last night.
On getting information that a house has collapsed, the in-charge of the local police station Alok Kantamani Thulung along with a team rushed to the spot. Police, fire brigade and disaster management personnel were engaged to remove the debris and restore normalcy. Rai's body was recovered from the debris and sent for post-mortem.
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A tree fell on the national highway at mile 29 but no major accident occurred though traffic was blocked in the area. Pratap Rai, a local resident said, "The Teesta River water entered our house in the middle of the night. Police came at night and asked us to vacate the house. The condition of the road is very poor. Even though we informed the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) several times, it has been of no use."
