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Sikkim government plans to make the state a round-the-year tourist destination

According to a new plan of the state government, Sikkim will soon become a year round tourism hotspot. As per a PTI report, the Tourism Department of Sikkim, in cooperation with other government agencies, has been working on a plan to build infrastructure like roads, hospitality, etc. and development of a large pool of manpower to promote Village Tourism, Hydro Tourism, Adventure Sports Tourism and Ecotourism. S B S Bhadauria, Tourism Secretary, Sikkim told PTI that everything in Sikkim - be its natural resources like mountains, lakes, waterfalls and other scenic places and the cultural life of the people and their lifestyle including cuisine-will be exploited to make tourism a round-the-year phenomenon. Bhadauria said the state government has enough funds at its disposal to develop tourism-related infrastructure. The Centre will also provide financial help to materialise the state’s tourism plans.

There has been a phenomenal growth in the number of Sikkim-bound tourists who have given a preference to the state over the Darjeeling Hill ever since the Gorkhaland stir resurfaced. The state, in the past few years, has emerged as one of the most sought-after hill stations in the country. Bhadauria hopes that income from tourism will become a major revenue component of the state in the years to come. He singled out adventure sports with maximum potential to emerge as a major revenue-generator in a couple of years with activities like paragliding, white water rafting and mountain biking attracting the attention of high-end tourists. “We have already started adventure sports like mountain biking expedition and white water rafting, which attracted a large number of tourists in the first half of this year,” informed Bhadauria. He further promised that other adventure activities will also be introduced for the tourists soon. Similarly, Village and Ecotourism have a huge potential to become a tourist attraction, as the visitors can enjoy activities typical to a village like harvesting, ethnic dressing, dances and buzz of the natural surroundings.

The state government will also provide financial assistance to set up cottages, restaurants and road connectivity to villages, informed Bhadauria. A variety of cultural festivals will also be held in these villages showcasing ethnic songs, costumes and other rituals to attract tourists. Meanwhile, the tourist inflow in Sikkim is set to register a ten per cent growth this year as around 3.27 lakh tourists have visited the state till October this year as against the figure of 3.50 lakh in 2007. According to Bhadauria, had it not been for the blockade of the National Highway 31A by Gorkhaland activists, the tally could have been much higher. “We have no control over external factors,” he said referring to the agitation in the Darjeeling Hills. He further added, “However, with Pakyong Airport, rail link up to Rangpo and alternative highways proposed to come up in the next couple of years, the infrastructure woes of the border state will be addressed fully.”

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