The picturesque Darjeeling, often referred to as the Queen of the Hills and known for its tea, timber and tourism industries, has been brought to its knees by the sheer force of nature

Once echoing with the chatter of holidaymakers and the whistle of the toy train, the hill town on Sunday resembled a zone of despair, roads buried under mud, bridges snapped, and frightened families huddled inside hotels and homes, waiting for help

Major highways like NH 55 and NH 10 remain blocked, paralysing transport to and from Siliguri and cutting off several remote hamlets

As the situation worsened, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held a high-level meeting at the state secretariat Nabanna, opened a 24x7 control room, and said she was personally monitoring the developments

"I am deeply worried and concerned that several areas in both North Bengal and South Bengal have been flooded due to sudden huge rains within a few hours last night as well as due to rush of excessive river waters in our State from outside," Banerjee posted on X