Three persons, including two tourists from Jaipur in Rajasthan, went missing when the vehicle they were travelling in plunged into the swollen river Teesta river near Coronation Bridge at Sevoke, around 30 km away from Siliguri, today. A search operation is on to trace them, it is learnt.

The tourists were headed for Sikkim from Siliguri when the driver lost control and the vehicle fell into the river, it is learnt. Sources said the tourists had hired the Innova car from a travel agency in Siliguri. Some drivers who witnessed the accident said the incident happened at around 1.45 pm and that they informed the police, which called the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and rafters from Teesta.

Police, NDRF, disaster management personnel, fire brigade personnel, and rafters have been conducting a search operation in the river.

The tourists have been identified as Aman Garg, 26, and Gaurav Sharma, 24, while the driver has been identified as 34-year-old Rakesh Rai, a resident of Bhanunagar in Siliguri. The driving licence, PAN card, and Aadhar cards of Mr Rai were recovered. Darjeeling superintendent of police Amarnath K said search and rescue operations were underway

ere underway. “Two tourists from Rajasthan and a local driver are missing after an SUV in which they were travelling in fell into the river Teesta when they were going to Sikkim from Siliguri. The search operation has been started, and National Disaster Response Force and divers have been pressed into service to locate them,” he said.

“The stretch to Coronation Bridge has been very slippery due to the mud and water that come from the upper areas. The driver might have lost control at a sharp bend and plunged directly into the river, around 150 feet below,” a police officer said.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, another Innova car carrying tourists of Bangladesh veered off the road and rolled down around 10 feet at Tarkhola on National Highway-10 today. However, all occupants of the car were unhurt.

Meanwhile, in Siliguri, incessant downpour disrupted normal life in the morning today, while some low-lying areas were water-logged. Weather experts have warned of ‘extremely heavy’ rainfall in the next few days.

According to the irrigation and waterways department, Siliguri received 111.04 mm of rainfall in the past 24 hours. Night-long rains left some areas including Hospital More, Khalpara, Asoke Nagar, Saktigarh, and areas adjacent the NJP railway station under the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC), and some areas of Bagdogra, Matigara, Phansidewa under Siliguri Sub Division water-logged. People waded through kneedeep, and even waist-deep waters in some areas. Officegoers had a harrowing time reaching their workplaces.

The director of the State Meteorological Centre, Sikkim, Indian Meteorological Department, Dr Gopinath Raha, said the region can get heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next few days. The administration said it was on the alert.