Sebak Saiba, a resident of Daragaon near Jaigaon in Alipurduar district, shifts to a relative’s place in a neighbouring area during the monsoon every year, leaving his small house locked.

Like 50-odd other families of the village, Saiba and his kin spend the rainy season at a relative’s place or a rented accommodation and return after the monsoon retreats from north Bengal.

“We cannot stay at our homes during the rainy season. Whenever it rains heavily, landslides occur in the Bhutan hills. Huge quantities of debris like pebbles, boulders, sand and sludge descend on our village,” said Sebak.

“The sludge even enters our residences and we have to clean them regularly. There is also a risk that we might be buried under the debris. That is why all families of Daragaon shift to adjacent locations during the monsoon,” he added.

Located around 62km from Alipurduar town, Daragaon is adjacent to the India-Bhutan border.

“Last year, debris descended from Bhutan because of a landslide during the monsoon and damaged the road that leads to our village. We have approached the local panchayat and the administration, but nothing has been done to stop the debris from affecting our locality,” said another resident.

After the southwest monsoon retreats, the villagers return home, clean the piles of debris and dried sludge so that they can live in Daragaon till the next monsoon.

With the onset of the monsoon this year, some of the families have already left Daragaon.

“Those who are still there will leave by next week. There have already been a couple of landslides. Boulders have come down and blocked access to some of the houses. Situation is so bad in our village that in case of an emergency, there is no road for a fire engine or an ambulance to enter,” the villager said.

The probable solution, the residents said, is the construction of a strong guard wall that will prevent the descent of the debris up to Daragaon.

“We don’t know when this problem will end. Till then, we will abandon the village during monsoons,” said a woman.

Officials of the district administration said they were aware of the problem but declined to make further comments.

Ganga Prasad Sharma, the chairman of the Jaigaon Development Authority, said
the JDA alone couldn’t build a guard wall.

“First of all, we need to assess the technical feasibility of the project (construction of a guard wall). Second, it will need a huge amount of funds and can be possible only if India and Bhutan take a joint initiative,” he said.

The JDA is a state government agency that works for the development of Jaigaon, which sits on the Bhutan border, and its surroundings.

“I am aware of the plight of these families and have already apprised the state authorities of their problem,” the JDA chairman added.