Gangtok, June 7: A total of 76 army personnel were airlifted on Saturday from Chaten in North Sikkim, where road links had been cut off due to a series of landslides triggered by heavy rainfall, officials said.
This marks the completion of a coordinated evacuation operation, which had earlier included the successful rescue of all stranded tourists in the region.
"Seventy-six army personnel were evacuated using three MI-17 helicopters. The airlift from Chaten concluded today, with the helicopters ferrying the soldiers to Pakyong Greenfield Airport," an official stated.
Torrential rain in recent days had caused multiple landslides in North Sikkim, severely disrupting road connectivity. Over 1,600 tourists had been stranded in Lachen, Lachung, and Chungthang before being rescued by the state authorities.
Rescue and evacuation operations were carried out jointly by the Indian Army, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Border Roads Organisation (BRO), and the Mangan district administration. Several helicopters were deployed to airlift more than 140 tourists from remote areas.
