Buried explosives in River Teesta hinders restoration; Army steps up combing op

Explosives of the Indian army, that got buried under the silt in the River Teesta’s banks, are slowing down the restoration work in Sikkim after the eastern state was hit by a flash flood on October 4.

The army has stepped up its combing operation to locate the hidden explosives and have pressed into action additional teams and sniffer dogs to locate the explosives anywhere down the river valley.

“The restoration work that has been taken up after the flash flood is going slow because of the explosives that may be buried anywhere under the silt and debris brought in by the flood waters. They pose a big threat,” said a senior official of the state’s disaster management authority.

The flash flood triggered by a glacial lake outburst in north Sikkim had washed away an ammunition depot of the army at Munshithang beyond Chungthang. The explosives, weapons and ammunitions landed in the river’s banks lower down the valley and got buried under the silt and debris in Sikkim and West Bengal.

“The chief secretary VB Pathak has already informed the Union cabinet secretary during a recent virtual meeting that the Teesta Basin is filled with weapons, ammunition, and explosives which remain hidden beneath the silt and debris. This is hampering the clearing of debris and sludge,” said another official who had attended the meeting.

HT had earlier reported that both the Sikkim government and the Jalpaiguri police in West Bengal have warned residents of villages and towns, located along the river’s banks that passes through the two eastern states, before entering Bangladesh.

“Local residents and workers taking up the restoration work have been asked to exercise extreme caution while clearing the debris. They have been asked to alert the authorities if they stumble upon any suspicious objects on the river’s bank. We have got multiple reports from local residents and the army was alerted,” said an official.

At least three people, including a seven-year-old boy, have already been killed in two separate incidents while trying to handle explosives they had found in the river’s bank till date. Earlier this week, another person was injured.

The army, which launched a combing operation soon after the flood to locate the buried explosives, has already diffused more than 1,200 explosives in around 200 locations in Sikkim and West Bengal. The Teesta passes through the two states before entering Bangladesh.

“Initially we had deployed 33 teams, each comprising 6-7 army personnel including explosive experts to look for the explosives. Now we have more than 50 teams working on it. Each team is combing at least five to seven kilometres of the river’s stretch. The number of sniffer dogs have been also increased,” said a senior army official aware of the developments.

He also said that drones fitted with special software to identity the explosives have also been pressed into action.