Aizawl, 28 May

Twelve people died and several others were missing as a stone quarry collapsed in Mizoram's Aizawl district on Tuesday morning amid incessant rains as an impact of cyclone Remal, officials said.

The incident happened around 6am in an area between Melthum and Hlimen on the southern outskirts of the Aizawl town, they said. "Twelve bodies have been recovered so far, while several others are suspected to be still trapped under the debris," Aizawl's Deputy Commissioner Nazuk Kumar told PTI. "We are looking for more bodies. The operations will continue till we clear the entire site," she added.

Director-General of Police (DGP) Anil Shukla told PTI that heavy rains were affecting the rescue operations at the disaster site. He said the rains triggered landslides at several other places in the state and at least two persons have been "swept away".

Among the victims of the stone quarry collapse are a four-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl, another police officer said. "We have also rescued two persons alive from the site," he said.

A landslide swept away a building in Aizawl's Salem Veng, following which three persons went missing. Search is underway for them, an official said. The state capital has been cut off from the rest of the country due to a landslide on National Highway 6 at Hunthar, officials said. Besides, several intra-state highways have also been disrupted by landslides, they said.

Chief Minister Lalduhoma announced Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia for the families of those killed in calamities caused by rains, including the quarry collapse. He handed over cheques of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the eight Mizo people who died in the quarry collapse and said the remaining amount would be given to them soon.

Home Minister K Sapdanga told PTI, "The identities of the four non-tribal people are being verified. If they are permanent residents of Mizoram, they will be given the ex-gratia amount. If they came here temporarily to work, then they will not get any financial support."

Lalduhoma said the government has earmarked Rs 15 crore to tackle disasters triggered by rains, which occurred as an aftereffect of cyclone Remal. Later, Lalduhoma along with Sapdanga, who also handles the Disaster Management and Rehabilitation Department, visited the stone quarry site to take stock of the situation and oversee the orescue operations.

Because of the rains, all schools were closed and government employees, except those involved in providing essential services, were asked to work from home.

Meanwhile, more than 30 families were shifted to safer places due to unprecedented flooding of the Tlawng river at Sairang village, about 21 km from Aizawl, a senior official said. "Several farms on the bank of the river have been fully submerged by the water. The water level is continuing to rise. However, no casualty has been reported," he added. In Aizawl town, some cemeteries have also been swept away by landslides, and over 150 graves damaged.