17 Apr :At least twelve labourers have been killed when a dam being constructed by a private firm collapsed near Rongli in East Sikkim district, police said on Friday.
The Rang Po dam collapsed at about 9:00 pm on Thursday night and so far 10 bodies have been recovered, but the toll could mount as it was still not clear how many labourers were at work at the site, Superintendent of Police M S Tuli said.
Since a one km tunnel was flooded after the collapse, rescue personnel were finding it difficult to trace the bodies, the police said.
"We have registered a case under section 304(A) of the IPC against the private developer and another company to which the dam construction work was awarded for causing unintentional death of the labourers, Tuli said in Gangtok on Friday.
The dam was being built between Lamaten and Rolleck for storage of the water of the River Rangpo for generation of power at the 99 MW Chujachen hydel project. No arrest was reported.