Siliguri, Oct. 5 -- Three generations of 70-year-old Mina Tamang's family had lived and prospered on the banks of the river, in the commercial town of Singtam in Sikkim, 30 kilometres from the state capital Gangtok. For years, the river had risen ominously when it rained in the mountains all around them, but for the most part, Teesta had kept the peace, sustaining the people that lived around it. On Wednesday, when the river rose again, this time breaking the embankments framing her course, Mina had all of half an hour warning; 30 minutes where her entire family saved themselves by running out of their homes; 30 minutes, at the end of which, they no longer have one.

On Wednesday, water from the Teesta coursed through Sikkim and parts of ...