3 soldiers killed, Lt Col among 6 missing as landslide hits Army station in Sikkim

Three Army personnel were killed while six others, including an officer, his wife and their daughter, went missing after a massive landslide wiped out a portion of a military camp at Chhaten in north Sikkim late on Sunday, a defence official said.

The landslide, which occurred at 7 pm near Lachen town in Mangan district, was triggered by heavy rainfall, the official said. Four Army personnel suffered minor injuries and were rescued.

Among the deceased were Havildar Lakhwinder Singh, Lance Naik Munish Thakur, who belongs to Sirmaur in Himachal Pradesh, and Porter Abhishek Lakhada. Those missing are Lt Col Pritpal Sandhu, his wife Sqn Leader Arati B Sandhu (retd), their daughter Amaira Sandhu, Subedar Dharamveer and Sepoys Sainudheen PK and Sunilal Muchahary.

“A catastrophic landslide occurred following intense and continuous rainfall in the region, causing the death of three Army men. Their bodies have been recovered while four other soldiers were rescued with minor injuries,” the official said in a statement. He said rescue teams were working round-the-clock under challenging conditions to locate those missing.

Lt Gen Zubin Minawalla, the Commander of the Army’s 33 Corps, visited the site today to oversee the rescue operation. “The Army promptly initiated rescue operations, displaying unparalleled commitment and resilience in the face of adversity,” the 33 Corps said in a social media post.

Sources said the entire mountain on which the military camp was located was ravaged. Photographs shared by the Army showed the devastation, with a portion of the camp being wiped out by the landslide.