Gangtok: The Indian Army and Sikkim Police have mounted a massive search and rescue operation on Friday after a vehicle with 11 tourists from West Bengal and Odisha rolled down into the Teesta river in North Sikkim on Thursday night.
Superintendent of Police Mangan, about 52km from state capital Gangtok, Sonam Detchu, said on Friday that two survivors with multiple wounds have been rescued while the remaining nine are yet to be traced.
The accident took place on the Chungthang–Munshithang Road in North Sikkim, and the vehicle plunged nearly 1,000 feet into the Teesta river, sources said.
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VIDEO | North Sikkim: A tourist vehicle plunged into the Teesta River on Thursday night; rescue efforts underway.
Two groups of vacationers from West Bengal and Odisha had co-hired a tourist vehicle, registered in Sikkim, sources added.
The two survivors were shifted to a Gangtok hospital this morning.
A state police team led by SDPO Chungthang, contingents of Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and district administration officials have launched a rescue and search operation under extremely challenging weather conditions, sources said.