JOIN USThe state government has issued a flood alert for Jalpaiguri district in North Bengal, with similar measures being taken for the districts of Darjeeling, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar.
Heavy rain since Sunday afternoon have left most tea-gardens in the region submerged and could lead to heavy losses, officials said.
Officials said that while all four districts in North Bengal have been lashed by heavy rain since Sunday afternoon and water levels have risen across the region, Jalpaiguri was hit the worst.
The State Secretariat asked district authorities to issue a flood alert in Jalpaiguri, where heavy rain in the upper reaches of river Teesta have affected hundreds of villages.
In Jalpaiguri town, water has flooded houses and commercial establishments, bringing life to a standstill.
Local news channels showed visuals of people wading through waterlogged streets, waist-deep in some places. Road connectivity has been severely hit, particularly those connecting to the neighbouring Bhutan.
Rail traffic has also been disrupted with a large number of trains, starting or terminating in the region, having been delayed by hours. The flood situation has forced schools, colleges and offices to be shut in Jalpaiguri, as roads have merged into the river.
While officials at the state secretariat in Kolkata are monitoring the situation, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has been called to employ relief and rescue missions. NDRF and district disaster management personnel have already evacuated residents of more than 100 villages to higher ground.
“The district administration is on high alert and we’re looking at all contingencies to control the situation,” Barun Roy, divisional commissioner of Jalpaiguri, told reporters.