Rescuers crawl through debris, death toll reaches 73

Mangan (Sikkim), Sept 21 (PTI) With 20 more bodies
recovered in quake hit the north-eastern Sikkim since Tuesday
night, the toll mounted to 73 Wednesday amidst fears that the
casualty could go up significantly as the rescue party were
yet to reach about 15 major villages in worst hit North
district.
Official sources said members of the rescue party found
six bodies in East Sikkim and 14 in North as they managed to
enter Dzongu from Mangan, the headquarter of North Sikkim
where the 6.8 magnitude tremor of Sunday was epicentred.
North district alone accounted for 50 deaths, while 18
people died in East district, four in West and one in South
district. Over 300 people were injured, the sources said.
The sources said the rescue party which include
personnel of the army, NDRF and local people would have to
clear at least 30 to 40 major roads blocks created by debris
of landslides to reach about 10-15 major villages.
"We have no idea of the condition in villages like
Sakyong-Pentong, Bey which were in forested areas beyond
Dzongu," an official said.
The villages in Sikkim are scattered and there is only
one major highway connecting Mangan to Dzongu.
The rescue operation was also hampered by intermittent
rains, the sources said.
The rescuers also met people who walked for two days
through hilly terrain and forests to reach Mangan from Dzongu.
Some of the people of Mangan expressed unhappiness with
the visiting media persons for worrying only about tourists
and ignoring locals.
One of them, W Bhutia, said: "You (media) people are
only interested about what happened to tourists. They receive
the best of services from hotels. Nobody bothers to take note
of what is happening to poor people like us."
Meanwhile, army sources said a 8-10 km stretch at
Tung, which is 16 km off Mangan, had caved in impeding rescue
operators from reaching worst-hit Chungthang.
Sikkim Director General of Police Jasbir Singh said
Border Road Organisation personnel were deployed to clear the
highway .
District collectors have been asked to reach Mangan,
Lachen, Lachung and Chungthan, rendered inaccessible by the
landslides, immediately by air as more bodies are feared to be
trapped in under quake debris.
An official release in Gangtok said roads to Namchi
and Jorethang in South Sikkim have also been reinstated.
Geyzing in West Sikkim is now accessible by road.
The other arterial roads in West and South Sikkim have
also been partially opened and light and emergency vehicles
are reported to be plying, it said.