40 foreigners evacuated from quake-hit Sikkim; toll rises

Around 40 foreigners who were stuck in quake-hit Sikkim have been evacuated, the government said on Wednesday. It clarified that its earlier figure of 400 was wrong.

The home ministry’s update also said that 116 people have been killed in the quake, including 57 in Sikkim. But Sikkim chief minister Pawan Kumar Chamling said 68 people were killed in his state.

“The tragedy has been enormous with 68 people killed and more than 300 injured. The loss has been extensive with 2,000 houses collapsed and more than 1 lakh houses damaged,” Chamling said. “The toll may rise as rescue teams reach further into interior areas,” the ministry said.

The ministry is expected to revisit the national disaster management authority guidelines after being criticised for its late response to the quake.

The guidelines recommended stationing of national disaster response force teams in every capital of the north-eastern states, besides Port Blair and Srinagar, as all of them are in the vulnerable seismic zone V and are earthquake-prone.

(With agency inputs)