The Union ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) will form a high-level team to soon visit NH10, the highway considered the lifeline of Sikkim and Bengal's Kalimpong, Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista said.
On Wednesday, Bista met Union minister Nitin Gadkari and apprised him about the damage to NH10, especially between the Coronation Bridge in Sevoke near Siliguri and Chitrey up to Teesta Bazar in Kalimpong.
“He (Gadkari) convened the meeting in the presence of senior officials from the ministry and the NHIDCL and directed them to immediately constitute a high-level team to visit NH10,” Bista said after the meeting. “He has asked the officials to immediately appoint a project management consultant (PMC) for NH10."
The team, Bista said, would explore all viable options, including realignment, elevated highway corridors, viaducts and tunnels, to ensure a permanent and time-bound resolution to the persistent issues on NH10 on a war footing.
Since December last year, the NHIDCL has been maintaining the highway. This monsoon, the highway has been closed many times due to landslides and cave-ins, especially along the 30km stretch between the Coronation Bridge at Sevoke and Chitrey.
In the current month, the stretch was closed for around 10 days because debris descended on the highway or portion of the road caved in and fell into the Teesta that flows parallel to the highway.
Because of such disruptions, vehicles bound for Sikkim and Kalimpong from Siliguri and vice-versa had to take detours.
“The road opened a few days back, but because of its condition in some stretches, vehicles are moving at a snail’s pace. Instead of a maximum of four hours, it is taking six to seven hours to reach Gangtok from Siliguri (located around 120km apart),” said a transporter in Siliguri.
During his meeting with Gadkari, Bista requested for more resources, including skilled personnel, heavy-duty machinery and landslide-resistant materials, to speed up restoration and stabilisation work of the highway.
“I have also urged for a stronger coordination among agencies like the NHIDCL, the IRCON, the NHPC, the BRO and the Brahmaputra Board, and a joint meeting with elected representatives, Bengal and Sikkim governments, the NDRF, the GSI, engineers and geologists to develop a unified, long-term plan for NH10 and the Teesta Basin,” Bista said.
Tourism worries
Tourism stakeholders, especially homestay owners, are perturbed by the NH10 situation.
Bhupal Thapa, adviser to the United Sittong Homestay Welfare Society, said there are currently around 150 homestay facilities operational in Sittong-I, Sittong-II & III and in Mungpo. To reach all these destinations, one has to take the NH10. A detour means almost double the distance.
Mungpo and Sittong are directly connected with Siliguri and the plains through NH10. There are alternative routes to reach the spots via Shivkhola and Kurseong from Siliguri, which are time-taking and more costly to reach for tourists,” said Thapa.
“Frequent traffic disruptions on NH 10 have left homestay owners concerned. Homestay owners are villagers who earn by hosting tourists. If the state of NH10 does not improve, we fear fewer tourists will come after Durga Puja,” he added.
Norden Michael Lepcha, the secretary of Kalimpong District Tourism Welfare Society, spoke on similar lines.
“There are around 1,000 homestay facilities across Kalimpong district. They had suffered heavy losses after the glacial lake outburst flood in October 2023 when tourists changed plans. This year, frequent closure of NH10 is another challenge. We are keeping fingers crossed,” said Lepcha.
MP seeks funds
Darjeeling MP Raju Bista placed a proposal before Union minister Nitin Gadkari, seeking funds from the Central Road and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF) to build roads and bridges in the hills and foothills. In all, Bista has proposed the construction of 11 bridges and nine roads.
“These roads and bridges will enhance inter-village linkages and will significantly boost socio-economic development, tourism and disaster resilience across Darjeeling, Kalimpong and the surrounding areas. The minister forwarded the request to the department concerned,” Bista said.