Army launches search operation as Teesta river turns into potential minefield
A senior police official of Jalpaiguri district in north Bengal said that it would take at least a week to sanitize the Teesta’s banks in the district. The explosives may include mortar shells, mines and other weapons used by the army
Gangtok:The army has launched a massive search operation to locate explosives that may be buried under the silt and debris on the banks of the Teesta River along a few hundred kilometres stretch in Sikkim and West Bengal.
“At least 33 teams, each comprising 6-7 army personnel, including army’s explosive experts, have been set up to locate explosives that may be buried in the silt and debris brought in by the flood waters on the banks of the River Teesta. Drones have also been pressed into action,” a senior army official told HT.
The flash flood triggered by a lake outburst in north Sikkim on Tuesday night had washed away an ammunition depot of the army in north Sikkim. Explosives, ammunition and weapons were washed away in the flood.
These explosives landed on the river’s banks further downstream in Sikkim and West Bengal and may now remain buried under the silt and debris anywhere between Chungthan in north Sikkim and Teesta Barrage in north Bengal.
HT had earlier reported that both the Sikkim government and the Jalpaiguri police in West Bengal warned residents of villages and towns, located along the river’s banks that pass through the two eastern states, before entering Bangladesh.
“The local population are hereby warned that explosives or ammunition may be found along the Teesta basin. These ammunitions should not be handled or picked up since they may explode and cause grievous injuries,” said an advisory issued by the Sikkim government on Thursday.
At least three people, including a seven-year-old boy, have already been killed in two separate incidents while trying to handle explosives they had found in the river’s bank.
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“Our teams are working in the field. Each team is covering at least five to seven kilometres of the river’s stretch. Explosives have been found and diffused in more than 100 locations till now,” said an army official.
On Sunday morning, reports poured in that one explosive was found on the river’s bank near Temi Tea Garden in south Sikkim. The area was cordoned off by the local administration. The army was alerted and senior district administration officials rushed to the spot.
“We cannot divulge details of what kind of explosives in how much quantity have been washed away because of National security,” said the officer.
A senior police official of Jalpaiguri district in north Bengal said that it would take at least a week to sanitize the Teesta’s banks in the district. The explosives may include mortar shells, mines and other weapons used by the army.
“People have been asked to alert the police and district emergency numbers if they spot any suspicious objects,” said the official.
The River Teesta originates from a glacial lake Khangchung Chho at an elevation of 5,280m in northeastern Sikkim. It passes through Sikkim and four districts of West Bengal before entering Bangladesh.
At least 55 people, including eight Indian Army personnel, have been killed and over 140 are still missing after a cloudburst over Lhonak Lake triggered a flash flood in the Teesta river basin in Sikkim. According to the Army, 14 soldiers are missing, and the search and rescue operations are still underway.
The Indian Army on Saturday expressed condolences over the loss of eight jawans and said that “concerted search and rescue efforts are ongoing to locate and rescue the remaining 14 missing soldiers and other civilians”.