Joy Roy Choudhury – Pelling
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Pawan Kumar Chamling
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Sikkim attracts over 10 lakh tourists annually. Infrastructure development has been a focus area for the state government, which will lead to further growth in tourist arrivals. Sikkim’s greenfield airport under construction at Pakyong will be operational by next year. “Besides the upcoming airport, initially construction of railway links up to Rangpo is being taken up and it is proposed to be expanded up to Nathula in the India-China border. The National Highway is being upgraded with proposal for construction of an alternate highway for Sikkim. Once these projects are completed, Sikkim will receive the maximum number of tourists,” said Pawan Kumar Chamling, chief minister of Sikkim during the inaugural ceremony of Chumbi Mountain Retreat Resort & Spa, a five-star luxury resort in Pelling.
The chief minister also welcomed investors to set up projects in the state, including tourism and hospitality projects. “Sikkim’s tourism vision is unique because it is backed by the policies of development and welfare of its people. You cannot promote tourism when there’s poverty and discontent. That is why the government is moving ahead with a comprehensive road map to make Sikkim a fully literate, poverty free and a self-reliant state by 2020,” he mentioned.
Sikkim was the first Indian state to frame a dedicated Eco-Tourism Policy with the assistance of Japanese and American experts. Over the last two decades Sikkim has been able to establish itself as premier eco-tourism destination in the country. “We have achieved this through formulation of some dedicated programmes and creation of innovative tourism concepts in the context of the country and the world itself,” said Chamling. It also aims to become a totally organic state by 2015. The state is already completely plastic-free and has been careful to promote only green industries.
Pointing out Sikkim has become one of the most sought after tourist destinations in the country, Chamling added that it is not because of the government’s efforts alone but also because of people’s contribution in preserving Sikkim as the model of tourism industry. “’Sikkim is a healthy mix of socio-cultural ethos of the Sikkimese people that includes heritage conservation measures and nature tourism. Equally evident is the aggressive promotion of pilgrimage tourism by creating host of pilgrimage centres based on people’s faith and belief. This has, in fact, led to defining a new tourism circuit within the state resulting in deeper integration with Buddhist Circuit tourism involving centres located in central India, eastern and north eastern region,” he added.
