…  the road is expected to be clear in a few days

Neten Dorji | Trashigang

Heavy rains in July blocked the gewog centre road to Kangpara, one of the remote gewogs in Trashigang, and since then it has remained cut off.

A massive landslide blocked the road at 8km towards Kangpara gewog from Thrimshing drungkhag. Kangpara gewog administration has cleared the smaller portion of blocks.

Gewog officials said that as of now there were no reports of residents running short of essential items in the gewog.

Kangpara gup, Sangay Wangdi said a narrow path has been carved into the landslide. The path is only wide enough for people to walk.

“People are transporting food items on their backs. If anyone slips the person would either die or be severely injured.”

“If boulders fall, those walking on the path cannot escape. They would fall down into Nyera Amachhu,” he said, adding people still travel despite the risks.

Vehicles from Thrimshing drop passengers and goods until the block. From there the goods are carried along the trail to the other end and beyond.

Kangpara residents said that they did not expect to be cut off for so long.

A shopkeeper in Kangpara, Minjur Dorji, said, “I am not able to restock my shop, which is almost empty now.”

“With the number of days increasing and the road still not connected, we would face difficulties in transporting essential items, if a shortage arises.”

Most of the shops in the gewog were empty since they could not restock.

Milam Dorji, 67, from Passaphu, said the residents are using the old route to connect with other places. “It usually took an hour by car to reach Thrimshing drungkhag. But now, it takes more than three hours.”

He said they have tried to clear the road manually wherever possible. “Only the major block has remained, as it requires machines to clear. Patience is giving way to frustration among villagers,” he said.

Meanwhile, the gewog administration has deployed two excavators to clear the blocks.

Gup Sangay Wangdi said they are trying to clear the roads at the earliest. “We have placed one machine on the Thrimshing side,” he said.

He also said that continuous falling boulders and landslides delayed work progress initially. “I am not sure how long it would take to clear the road since there is lot of muck.”

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