Army brigade still cut off in quake-hit Sikkim

About 5,000 troops of an Indian Army brigade remain cut off from the world almost a week after a massive earthquake hit Sikkim.

About 5,000 troops of an Indian Army brigade remain cut off from the world almost a week after a massive earthquake hit Sikkim.

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The personnel of 112 Brigade in Lachung in north Sikkim, closer to the epicentre of the 6.8 Ritcher scale quake, are now entirely dependent on the Indian Air Force (IAF) for supplies of essentials.

"The brigade is cut off by road completely. We have established contact with them and are maintaining an air bridge to make supplies reach them," an IAF officer said here Saturday.

In the earthquake that struck Sunday evening, the army had lost two soldiers and several others were injured when their bunkers collapsed in the interior parts of Sikkim, which has a border with China.

Apart from its own existing troops on ground, the army has also rushed a column of its special forces for the hard task of establishing a land link with the troops in the remote corners of Sikkim.

The special forces men -- numbering about 100 -- were deployed in the rescue and relief operations, particularly to reach the stranded troops, the officers said.

They were transported to affected areas by IAF helicopters, the officers added.