Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan road: Truckers cry for more incentives for longer haul

Gangtok,TT, Dec. 21: Truckers hauling goods up to North Sikkim along the Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan road have demanded more incentives while spelling out the difficulties they would face while trying to negotiate the route via Gangtok.

Truckers favour the Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan route as it entails driving 35km less than what they negotiate on the North Sikkim highway via Gangtok. However, the collapse of the concrete bridge with a 58-wheel trailer atop it at Rangchang Khola, a mountain stream 19km from Singtam, on Monday has now forced them to use the longer route.

Since the collapse that killed eight persons, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has been checking the old Bailey bridge, unused since the concrete structure was commissioned in 2009, to see if it can be used for light traffic in a day or two. The collapsed bridge had a carrying capacity of 70 tonnes.

“There are hardly any trucks that are interested in taking the route via Gangtok to Mangan (the North district headquarters). Heavy vehicles are not allowed in Gangtok between 9am and 11am and from 3pm to 5pm. It is office hours then. Trucks will have to wait at Ranipool below Gangtok during this time. The route through Gangtok is also steeper in places than the road via Singtam. This means more fuel consumption,” said Mingma Sherpa, the president of the Sikkim Truck Drivers’ Association (STDA).

He said on an average about 100 trucks drove to North Sikkim via Singtam daily. “Our trucks carry goods up to 10 tonnes and old vehicles break down at places like Pesang near Gangtok. These are some of the reasons why truckers coming from Siliguri do not prefer the route via Gangtok,” he said.

He said the STDA would be talking to the truck owners about enhancing the hire charges if they were to take the North Sikkim highway. “We will be seeking around 20 per cent increase in the charges that ranges between Rs 12,000 and Rs 14,000 for 10 tonnes of goods ferried from Siliguri to Mangan. Our members get a consolidated salary and incentives for loads delivered. The incentive has to increase as drivers will be on the wheel for longer hours while taking the North Sikkim highway,” Sherpa said. He said a new bridge should be constructed at Rangchang and the Bailey made fit for trucks carrying loads up to 10 tonnes as soon as possible.

The BRO is working on the Bailey bridge. The old steel, bridge which could carry 20 tonnes, is more than 20 years old.

“We are currently conducting load tests on the Bailey bridge to see how it responds. We want it to open for light vehicles by tomorrow. We will slowly upgrade the old bridge for heavy vehicles,” said the chief engineer of the BRO’s Project Swastik, Brigadier Rajiv Sawhney.

East Sikkim superintendent of police M.S. Tuli said he was aware of the traffic situation if trucks to North Sikkim went via Gangtok. “We have briefed the traffic police on the situation and extra policemen would be deployed to ease the congestion,” Tuli said.

Except for one, all bodies have been recovered from the spot of the bridge collapse.