Cracks appear in railway bridge after heavy rains in Siliguri; trains diverted

Siliguri: Routes of several trains were diverted after a pillar in the Sevoke Rail bridge showed cracks as torrential rains softened the earth at its base. [caption id=“attachment_1073943” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] Repair work was going on urgent basis at the rail bridge, lifeline of the North Bengal, a Northeast Frontier Railway official said. Assam-bound locals and some long distance trains were being diverted to alternate routes, the official said. There was no report of cancellation of trains as of now but they were running late by hours, the official said. The stretch of track connect Sevoke, North Bengal with the Hills. Meanwhile, torrential rains flooded low-lying areas of Mal sub-division and inundated a large part of Jalpaiguri town as rivers Teesta and Karala were in spate, a district official said. After heavy rains in past few days, 11 sluice gates were opened in Teesta to release 18 cusecs of water, the district official said. The rains have affected 4,000 people.