Sikkim govt rescues stranded tourists, locals, and taxi drivers in Chaten

The helicopter sortie began this morning from the Pakyong Greenfield Airport, with the first sortie taking off towards Chaten to initiate the evacuation process
ANI
The Sikkim government has arranged a special helicopter sortie for their immediate air evacuation in response to requests made by stranded locals, tourist taxi drivers, and certain government officials stationed at the Chaten area.
The operation comes as part of the ongoing coordinated relief and evacuation efforts being undertaken in view of recent adverse conditions that have disrupted normal road connectivity and access to the region.
The helicopter sortie began this morning from the Pakyong Greenfield Airport, with the first sortie taking off towards Chaten to initiate the evacuation process.
The State Government has reiterated its commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all citizens in affected regions.
Rescue and relief operations were being conducted in North Sikkim, following recent floods in the region.
Meanwhile, the Sikkim government is still closely monitoring the overall situation in the region and is providing all necessary support and assistance to those affected.
Earlier on Friday, in a major relief operation, all stranded tourists were successfully evacuated from Chaten, one of the worst-hit areas in North Sikkim, following recent landslides and flash floods. Mangan District Collector Anant Jain confirmed the evacuation.
DC Anant Jain praised the joint efforts of the district administration, military, paramilitary forces, and local communities for their swift and coordinated response. "Our priority was to ensure the safety of every stranded individual. We thank the Indian Air Force and all ground teams for their relentless service," Jain said.
The final phase of the operation involved Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters airlifting the remaining 63 tourists from Chaten on Thursday, with follow-up sorties resuming on Friday morning as weather conditions improved. The operation was carried out in coordination with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Border Roads Organisation (BRO), and local administration.
Earlier in the week, more than 1,600 tourists were rescued by road from Lachung and Lachen valleys in a massive ground operation led by DC Jain. The tourists, including several elderly individuals and children, were safely escorted through challenging terrain and intermittent weather disturbances.
Several days of heavy rainfall have triggered landslides, mudslides, flash floods, and rockfalls in many parts of the state.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Hindu

14 hours ago

• The Hindu

First batch of 33 pilgrims leaves for Kailash Manasarovar Yatra via Sikkim's Nathula

'The first batch of 33 pilgrims and two liaison officers left for Kailash Manasarovar Yatra via Nathula in Sikkim on Friday (June 20, 2025),' officials said. 'Governor Om Prakash Mathur flagged off the yatra at a function held at the Sino-Indian frontier in East Sikkim,' they said. The function was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs. Tourism and Civil Aviation Department Additional Chief Secretary C.S. Rao welcomed the pilgrims on behalf of the State Government and the people of Sikkim. He said that the first batch comprised 33 pilgrims and two liaison officers, one each from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police. Mr. Rao said the State Government, in coordination with the departments concerned and paramilitary forces, had made all necessary arrangements to ensure the safety, comfort and smooth passage of the pilgrims during their journey. The Governor, in his address, appreciated the reopening of the yatra after six years and said that the resumption of pilgrimage was made possible owing to consistent efforts by the Centre. Mathur said Kailash Manasarovar holds deep religious and cultural importance for pilgrims across the country. The Sikkim Governor said that more batches of pilgrims would undertake the journey in the coming days. Mathur lauded the State Government for the flag-off event at Nathula and appreciated the people of Sikkim for upholding the value of "Atithi Devo Bhava" with commitment and respect towards the pilgrims. The Governor advised the pilgrims to take care of their health and expressed hope for a smooth and safe pilgrimage. This year, 750 Indian pilgrims have been selected for the yatra, with 500 travelling in 10 groups via the Nathu La route and 250 through the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand.

The Hindu

3 days ago

• The Hindu

Coastal areas in Kozhikode under sea erosion threat

The District Disaster Management Authority on Wednesday stepped up surveillance measures along the coastline of Kozhikode district as several fishermen families complained of increasing sea erosion threat. Revenue department sources said the worst-hit were those living on the coastline of Vadakara, where the construction of sea wall had been pending for years on several vulnerable stretches. Some of the worst-affected families were asked to vacate their houses on Wednesday following the visit of local administrators to the affected areas. Officials said relief camps would be opened in case of any emergency situation. 'Several houses are on the verge of destruction near the Vadakara sand banks and Puramkara areas. The issue will worsen as long as we delay the construction of sea walls,' said V. Muneer, a local resident. He alleged that the rehabilitation measures offered by the State government under 'Punargeham' project had failed to win the confidence of coastal people. Following the rough weather alert by the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, the entry of tourists to vulnerable coastal areas was restricted. Fishermen who venture into the sea on country boats were also asked to be vigilant against the rough sea and high waves. As part of the heightened vigil, Fisheries department officials asked boat owners, especially those from the Chombala harbour, to review the safety of fishing boats anchored at various harbours. They were also urged to ensure a safe distance between all anchored boats and avoid chances of collision during high waves. Revenue department officials said no major rain-related calamities were reported in the district on Wednesday. They said all the rescue forces, including the community rescue volunteers in villages and urban areas, were remaining alert to handle emergency situations. Meanwhile, the death of a 46-year-old man after accidentally slipping into an open drain at Thadambattuthazham in Kozhikode city on Tuesday sparked wide public protest. The protesters alleged that the drain constructed about 25 years ago was continuing to be a death trap in the area. The body of the victim, identified as Shameer, was recovered with the support of the National Disaster Response Force.

News18

3 days ago

• News18

Why Chopper Services In Pilgrim Spots Must Be Stopped

Last Updated: The number of people who take helicopters are a fraction of those who go by road and hence limiting such chopper services to emergency evacuations must be considered On Sunday, seven people, including a two-year-old, died when a chopper operated by a private aviation company carrying Char Dham pilgrims from Kedarnath crashed near Gaurikund in Rudraprayag district on its way to Guptkashi. Initial indications are that it also happened due to poor visibility caused by bad weather. There are predictable—and possibly even true—suspicions about maintenance issues and cutting corners when it comes to passenger safety. On May 8, six people including the pilot were killed when their helicopter crashed into a hillside in Uttarkashi when flying from Dehradun to Harsil. Ten days later, an air ambulance helicopter made an emergency landing in Kedarnath when its tail rotor malfunctioned but no one got hurt. On June 7, a chopper carrying 5 people from Rudraprayag to Kedarnath in Uttarakhand had a technical snag during take-off but managed to land safely on a highway. It is not surprising that the Uttarakhand Chief Minister has halted all helicopter services in the state for two days. However, what he said raises fresh concerns. He asked the state's Chief Secretary to form an expert panel to prepare a standard operating procedure mandating thorough technical checks of helicopters and taking updated weather information before every flight. This implies that these basic safety procedures are not generally conducted. That suspicion is borne out by information emerging that the ill-fated flight happened before the time slot allotted to that chopper service, indicating that the owners were probably running extra services off the register. As there are over 300 scheduled flights around that area during peak Char Dham yatra season, the temptation to squeeze in a few more beyond official hours is high. And if the area has no ATC or radar systems, weather changes can prove deadly. Last October, the Chief Election Commissioner and three other officials and the pilot had a close shave when their helicopter had to make an emergency landing near Munsiyari in Uttarakhand en route to the Milam Glacier because of a sudden weather deterioration. Exactly two years before that, in 2022, another chopper belonging to the same company whose helicopter crashed on Sunday also came down two km from Kedarnath killing six passengers and the pilot. So, can rigorous checks really ensure safety? When India's first Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and 13 others died in a crash in the Nilgiri Hills 2021, they were aboard a MI-17 Indian Air Force helicopter, not one operated by a private company. And yet, even with two very experienced IAF pilots at the helm, their helicopter hit a tree and flew into the hillside just minutes from its destination, the Defence Services Staff College at Wellington. A tri-service court of inquiry examined the evidence of the flight data recorder and concluded that it was a Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT), that means the pilot was in full control but crashed the chopper because of faulty 'situational awareness" the aircraft strikes the terrain. The helicopter was apparently flying at a lower than expected altitude when it entered a rolling cloud bank that reduced visibility to the extent that it hit the hillside while engulfed in it. Back in 2009, a state government helicopter carrying the then Andhra Pradesh CM Rajshekhar Reddy and four others took off from Hyderabad but flew into bad weather and tried to fly around it. The pilots decided to turn left after crossing the Krishna River but then had a problem with the oil pressure as it flew over the dense Nallamala Forest area. They were trying to search the manual for a remedy when the chopper crashed into a hillside while banking left. In May 2011, Dorjee Khandu, then CM of Arunachal Pradesh and four others including two pilots died when their single engine chopper crashed at 13,000 ft near Sela Pass in the West Kameng district while flying from Tawang to Itanagar. Ten days before that, A Mi-17 helicopter also crashed in the Tawang area killing 17 people but the pilot and five others survived with serious burns. Whether Uttarakhand or Nilgiris, Eastern Ghats or eastern Himalayas, hilly terrain is not the best place for extensive helicopter activity as weather changes very quickly there and winds can be very unpredictable at any time of the year. Unfortunately, there have been plenty of helicopter crashes in non-mountainous areas too, notably one that killed India's then Lok Sabha Speaker GMC Balayogi in 2002 in Kaikalur in Andhra Pradesh—due to bad weather. It may be argued that politicians and officials often need to get from one place to another quickly and helicopters offer the best option if roads are not good and there are no railheads or airports nearby. But the same constraint cannot be applicable to pilgrims and tourists who comprise the bulk of people using this precarious mode of transport today. There must be rationalisation of usage in the name of safety even if accessibility is a tourism mantra now. The crux of the dilemma is the conflation of pilgrimage with tourism—manifest in the oxymoronic phrase 'spiritual tourism"—because both involve travel. But the purposes of both are utterly different. Spiritual by definition cannot be materialistic; it is about purifying the soul and attaining enlightenment. Tourism is primarily to gratify the five senses—and there is nothing wrong with that. But the attitude to accessing either (or both) cannot be the same. The age-old practice of pilgrimage was not regarded as a fun family outing but a serious personal spiritual journey, even if often conducted in groups. These journeys were not meant to be 'done" as quickly and as comfortably as possible with all modern amenities so that they could be ticked off a bucket list like a holiday hotspot. In fact, temples like Guruvayoor and Sabarimala still prescribe mental and physical preparations including austerities for pilgrims. Just because Char Dham and many other pilgrimage destinations are in beautiful locales does not mean they should be treated like tourism spots that seek to make their customers happy with conveniences from free airport transfers to heated pools. Pilgrimages are a sacred journey, where exertion to arrive at the presence of the Almighty is expected of devotees of many faiths, like undertaking Hajj to Mecca or walking to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Unlike many faiths, there is no extra merit in going on a pilgrimage for Hindus; it is a personal choice. But it is not meant to be an easy choice, to be fitted into a holiday itinerary and cushioned with whatever comforts money can buy for the journey. Devotion rather than wallets are the prerequisite and the authorities need to lay down rules of conduct, if the sacredness of pilgrimages are to be maintained as well as the safety of both people and the holy locations. The states in which popular high-altitude pilgrimage spots are located particularly need to take some tough decisions as the numbers will continue to rise, putting pressure on infrastructure in an ecologically fragile and climatically unpredictable area. The number of people who take helicopters are a fraction of those who go by road—in vehicles and then on foot (or hooves!)—and hence limiting such chopper services to emergency evacuations must be considered. top videos View all Before the advent of helicopters, did devotees not make it to remote pilgrimage spots? Ensuring private helicopters are not taking dangerous liberties with the rules is next to impossible, given our Indian propensity to cut corners. However, good roads, adequate rest and recuperation facilities, efficient hospitals, and provision for wheelchairs should enable thousands of pilgrims to make it to these places—and provide many more jobs for locals too. The author is a freelance writer. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. tags : Char Dham Yatra helicopter crash kedarnath Rudraprayag Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: June 17, 2025, 15:53 IST News opinion Opinion | Why Chopper Services In Pilgrim Spots Must Be Stopped