Sikkim is still beautiful, bountiful, buoyant, benign and
beckoning even with an accelerated development pace that has come into
implementation upon its physical face which otherwise would have eroded some of
its physical sheen and shine over the years. However, Sikkim’s tourism has bloomed
and blossomed every succeeding year perhaps the total figure going as much as
that of the ambient population.
And Sikkim has never ever to woo and wrest and snatch an unwilling
tourist to our side of the boundary. They come blindly and unquestionably,
ascend the enchanting, waiting mountains to embrace a cool snowy hill. Our
treasure house is none others than the neighbouring West Bengal. As Rajasthan’s
Mt Abu is to the Gujaratis, Sikkim is to the Bengalis. Vast neighbouring market
is always open, winter or summer, spring or autumn. Our clientele and customers
are always waiting for our signal to enter and to exchange a tourist culture that
enriches each other materially, mentally.
There is significant and substantive change in the tourism
pattern now and so to say then. While a decade or two earlier a tourist used to
seek the peaks and tops of mountain to browse through and satisfy his urge, now
he clamours for the hearth and its warmth in a solitary rural setting shutting
out from the hustle and bustle of a chaotic and cacophonic world outside,
sharing nuances of a homely relationships with other members of the society, a
cultural mix that is desired and sought after to soothe our frayed nerves.
Tourism is no more an activity to fly and travel, run and
halt at 5- stars, dine and dance at decorated halls deep into the wee hours of
the night but relax and retire, quiet and tranquil, in the organic ambience of
a rustic village, reinventing our past, refreshing our traditional ancients. It
will stabilize our wobbling woes, straightens out our aberrations, motions,
emotions, equations, in sync with pragmatic living.
Sikkim has a unique distinction of earning the epithet of
being a nature’s garden so named by naturalists and foresters. The other name
it is entwined with is Indrakil , Lord Indra’s garden. It has
snowy peaks, lakes--some quiet and sombre, others--glacial, muddy and hissing,
roaring, rude; sparkling waterfalls, hot springs, narrow valleys and sprawling grasslands,
tropical and temperate climes, forested slopes, multitude of streams and
springs bursting out and rushing to mix with the nearest rivers. Hills criss-crossing,
playing hide and seek, morning clouds hanging low and resting on the valleys
and rising as the morning matures, active during the day, black and thundering,
scaring us away in the evenings.
With so much in store in nature for our hungry tourist what
else is needed except a smiling face, a helping hand to the old and the needy,
a hospitable behaviour which Sikkim has in plenty to offer to an enquiring
visitor.
Our biggest challenges for a fully functional tourism
industry are our road network – principally the NH10. The government is fully
engaged with its speedy restoration and repair. The fact that stretches of it
fall in the neighbouring state and that the maintenance and management of this
road lie with the Government of India are issues which are being settled with the
active pursuance by the Government of Sikkim, hopefully, we will soon see a
better road scenario in the state. The other impending factors are the
excessive rainfall. Some wonder whether the Cherapunji highest rainfall
position status has shifted to Sikkim and therefore. Weak geological formations,
improper agricultural practices, faulty irrigation channels all contribute to
the fragility of the roads.
While advocating and pursuing a strong tourism-based economy
for our state we may have to specially protect our core areas situated at the
ecologically sensitive areas as that Rhododendrons Orchids, Primulas and
thousands of high-altitude flora and fauna may react adversely to the access an
entry of such a huge caravan of highly polluting automobiles such that we may
lose the glory and majesty of these flagship aesthetic species in the long run.
