Overview
- Officials put the death toll at 39 as teams reach remote pockets and stable weather accelerates road and power repairs.
- The GSI says it issued an orange high‑risk landslide forecast around 2:15 pm on October 4 for multiple Darjeeling blocks and attributes the failures to an extreme downpour on already saturated terrain, including 393 mm at Kurseong over October 4–5.
- Provisional damage to state property in Darjeeling and Kalimpong stands at Rs 10.62 crore, with key roads, culverts and water assets hit and the main link to Siliguri still shut as traffic is diverted via Tindharia and Pankhabari.
- The tea sector reports heavy losses, with the Tea Association of India estimating Rs 11–12 crore in damage and planters warning totals could reach about Rs 50 crore, including major hits at estates such as Chengmari in Jalpaiguri.
- Environmental experts point to unregulated construction on riverbeds and steep slopes, deforestation and poor drainage as risk multipliers and urge stricter land‑use controls and better community preparedness.