The much-delayed evacuation of stranded tourists began by road from Toong in Sikkim's Mangan district on Monday noon, officials said.

So far, a total of nine tourists have been evacuated, they said.

The evacuation process is being led by the Mangan District Magistrate Hem Kumar Chettri and officials from Tourism and Civil Aviation and Forest Departments, besides the Travel Agent Association of Sikkim (TAAS).

Despite incessant rains and multiple slides to cross over, the team is handling the evacuation with safety, care and caution, in batches, they said.

Around 1200 tourists, including some foreigners, are stranded in Lachung town for the past one week as the road and communication networks have been crippled by torrential rains and landslides in several areas of Mangan district disrupting connectivity with the rest of the country.

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is carrying out the restoration of the road network to facilitate vehicular traffic to and from Mangan district at the earliest, the officials added.

At least six people have been killed in Sikkim due to landslides triggered by heavy rain over the past few days. The natural calamity has also damaged properties and disrupted power and food supplies and mobile networks in several areas, officials said.

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