Mangan, Sikkim: A high-stakes, multi-agency search operation has entered its fourth day in North Sikkim, yet there remains no trace of eight individuals who vanished after their tourist SUV plummeted nearly 1,000 feet into the raging Teesta River on the night of May 29. The grim accident occurred around 8 p.m. on the treacherous Lachen–Chungthang stretch, between Chubambu and Munshithang.
The ill-fated vehicle, carrying 11 people including ten tourists from Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, and Odisha, along with a local driver, was en route from Lachen to Lachung when it skidded off the road and plunged into the gorge. In the immediate aftermath, two teenage boys, 17-year-old Sairaj Jena, suffering a punctured lung, and his cousin Swayam Supratim Nayak, battling a brain haemorrhage, were miraculously rescued hours later. Both are currently receiving critical care at STNM Hospital in Gangtok.
Among the missing is Itishri Jena, 46, the General Secretary of the BJP Mahila Morcha in Odisha, who was travelling with her two sons, brothers, and their families. Sairaj is her younger son. Speaking from Mangan, Sisir Nayak, brother of the missing BJP leader, recounted the harrowing experience: “Our vehicle was ahead. The other one just disappeared from sight as we neared Chungthang. We tried calling them, but there was no response. Later, the ITBP and police helped us locate the two boys near the riverbank. They may have jumped out before the vehicle fell.”
The search for the remaining eight has been severely hampered by rising water levels and adverse weather conditions. Sonam Detchu Bhutia, SP of Mangan district, confirmed that while the vehicle was initially visible, the swelling Teesta has now completely submerged it. “We recovered mobile phones and ID cards from the site, but not a single trace of the missing passengers,” he stated. Adding to the despair, one body was spotted on a cliffside, but recovery efforts have proven impossible due to the treacherous terrain and relentless flooding. “We tried rope rescue and even river crossing with a lifeboat, but the location is unreachable,” Bhutia elaborated.
Families of the missing have set up camp in Mangan, their anguish palpable as they cling to diminishing hope. The ongoing rains have also damaged stretches of the Mangan–Chungthang road, forcing rescue personnel to trek to the accident site on foot. While a May 22 advisory had limited traffic movement in the region, officials clarified that the accident occurred on a different, relatively safer route. The driver, identified as Passang D. Sherpa of Singhik, Mangan, is also among the missing. Police have registered a case under Sections 281, 106, 125A, and 125B of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, at Chungthang Police Station, with investigations underway and officials awaiting a GREF report for technical analysis. As the Teesta continues its relentless surge, Sikkim grapples with one of the most harrowing tourist tragedies in its recent memory.
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