Sikkim
Sikkim is around 1600 km. away from Delhi and consists of 0.05% population of India. The state is known for its tourism industry because of its scenic beauty. It was also declared as the first “Organic State” in India recently.
| Topic | Data/Facts |
| 1 History | 1.1 This state was formed on 16th May, 1975. 1.2 The Kingdom of Sikkim was founded by the Namgyal dynasty in the 17th century. It was ruled by Buddhist priest-kings known as the Chogyal. It became a princely state of British India in 1890. 1.3 Modern Sikkim is a multiethnic and multilingual Indian state. 1.4 The origin theory of the name Sikkim is that it is a combination of two Limbu words: su, which means “new”, and khyim, which means “palace” or “house”. |
| 2 Geography | 2.1 Climate: (i) The state has five seasons: winter, summer, spring, autumn, and monsoon season. (ii) Sikkim’s climate ranges from sub-tropical in the south to tundra in the north. (iii) Most of the inhabited regions of Sikkim experience a temperate climate. (iv) Sikkim is one of the few states in India to receive regular snowfall. (v) During the monsoon, heavy rains increase the risk of landslides. The record for the longest period of continuous rain in Sikkim is 11 days. Fog affects many parts of the state during winter and the monsoons, making transportation perilous. 2.2 Agriculture: (i) The state’s economy is largely agrarian based on the terraced farming of rice and the cultivation of crops such as maize, millet, wheat, barley, oranges, tea, and cardamom. (ii) Sikkim produces more cardamom than any other Indian state and is home to the largest cultivated area of cardamom. (iii) In 2003, Sikkim decided to fully convert to organic farming and achieved this goal in 2015 becoming India’s first “organic state”. 2.3 Natural Resources: Sikkim has a small mining industry exists in Sikkim extracting minerals such as copper, dolomite, talc, graphite, quartzite, coal, zinc, and lead. 2.4 Major rivers: (i) Teesta River (ii) Rangeet River (iii) Takcham Chu (iv) Ramphu Chu (v) Aho Khola (vi) Andheri Khola (vii) Lachen Chu (viii) Lachung Chu (ix) Ratgabg Chu (x) Dickling Khola (xi) Rongli Khola (xii) Dichu (xiii) Pachey Khola (xiv) Rongni Chu (xv) Roro Chu 2.5 Animals: (i) The fauna of Sikkim include the snow leopard, musk deer, Himalayan tahr, red panda, Himalayan marmot, Himalayan serow, Himalayan goral, muntjac, common langur, Asian black bear, clouded leopard, marbled cat, leopard cat, dhole, Tibetan wolf, hog badger, binturong, and Himalayan jungle cat. (ii) Among the animals more commonly found in the alpine zone are yaks, mainly reared for their milk, meat, and as a beast of burden. (iii) The avifauna of Sikkim include the impeyan pheasant, crimson horned pheasant, snow partridge, Tibetan snowcock, bearded vulture and griffon vulture, as well as golden eagles, quails, plovers, woodcocks, sandpipers, pigeons, Old World flycatchers, babblers and robins. Sikkim has more than 550 species of birds, some of which have been declared endangered. (iv) Sikkim also has a rich diversity of arthropods, many of which remain unstudied. (v) Some of the most understudied species are Sikkimese arthropods, specifically butterflies. Of the approximately 1,438 butterfly species found in the Indian subcontinent, 695 have been recorded in Sikkim. These include the endangered Kaiser-i-hind, the Yellow Gorgon and the Bhutan Glory. 2.6 Neighbouring States: West Bengal – South Nepal – West Bhutan – East Tibet – North and North-East 2.7 Capital city: Gangtok (The largest city) 2.8 Total Land Area: (i) Total area is 7,096 sq. km. (ii) 27th largest state in India. |
| 3 Forestry | 3.1 Forest: (i) Forest Cover: 3,342.49 sq. km. (ii) Very Dense Forest: 1,101.96 sq. km. (iii) Moderately Dense Forest: 1,552.31 sq. km. (iv) Open Forest: 688.22 sq. km. (Data as per ISFR 2019 assessment) 3.2 National Parks: Khangchendzonga National Park, Chungthang 3.3 Wild Life Sanctuary: (i) Kyongnosla Alpine Sanctuary, East Sikkim (ii) Fambong Lho Wildlife Sanctuary, East Sikkim (iii) Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary, North Sikkim (iv) Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary, South Sikkim (v) Varsey Rhododendron Sanctuary, West Sikkim (vi) Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary, Pakyong 3.4 Birds Sanctuary: Kitam Bird Sanctuary, Kitam |
| 4 Economy | 4.1 Major Economic Data: (i) GDP Growth: 13.13% (ii) GDP: 32,496 Crore INR (2019-20) (iii) GDP Rank: 28th (iv) Per Capita Income: 487,201 INR (2019-20) 4.2 Industries: Major industries are as under: – (i) Tourism in Sikkim has emerged as the new profession of the Sikkimese people with its vast natural potential. Promotion of village tourism, homestay, cultural tourism, trekking tourism, ecotourism, wellness tourism, flora-tourism and adventure tourism has given fillip to the tourism trade in the state. (ii) Sikkim is the only state which offers excise benefits and major players from the pharmaceutical industry have set up their manufacturing units in the state. Few of these are Cipla, Sun Pharma, Zydus Cadila, Alembic, IPCA, Alkem Lab, Intas Pharma, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, and Unichem. |
| 5 Transportation | 5.1 Air, Railways and Roads are the major transportation means of Sikkim. 5.2 Other Important facts: Sikkim Nationalised Transport runs bus and truck services. Privately run bus, tourist taxi, and jeep services operate throughout Sikkim and also connect it to Siliguri. 5.3 Major Railway Stations (i) Rangpo railway station (ii) Sivok–Rangpo line 5.4 Major Air Ports: Domestic Airports: Pakyong Airport, Gangtok |
| 6 Infrastructures | 6.1 Power installed Capacity: (i) Total Power: 674.43 MW (ii) Thermal: 102.25 MW (iii) Nuclear: 0 (iv) Hydro: 520.00 MW (v) Renewable Energy Source: 52.18 MW |
| 7 Census and Demography | 7.1 Demographic Data: (i) Population: 610,577 (6.11 Lakhs) (ii) Male: 323,070 (iii) Female: 287,507 (iv) Gender Ratio: 890 females per 1000 males (v) Population Growth: 12.89% (vi) Percentage of total population of the country: 0.05% (vii) Density: 86/sq. km. (viii) Rural Population: 456,999 (74.85%) (ix) Urban Population: 153,578 (25.15%) (x) 28th most populous state in India (Based on 2011 census) 7.2 Major Religion followers: (i) Hinduism: 352,662 (57.76%) (ii) Christianity: 60,522 (9.91%) (iii) Islam: 9,867 (1.62%) (iv) Jainism: 314 (0.05%) (v) Buddhism: 167,216 (27.39%) (vi) Sikhism: 1,868 (0.31%) (Based on 2011 census) |
| 8 Culture | 8.1 Literature: Literary work is majorly found under categories: (i) English (ii) Nepali (iii) Bhutia (iv) Lepcha (v) Limbu (vi) Hindi 8.2 Major Poets & Authors: (i) Gadul Singh Lama (ii) S. Mahinda (iii) Kazi Dawa Samdup (iv) Tanka Bahadur Subba (v) Gyatsho Tshering (vi) Kedar Gurung 8.3 Major Festivals: (i) Tihar (Diwali) (ii) Dashain (Dashera) (iii) Maghe Sankranti (iv) Sakela (v) Chasok Tangnam (vi) Bhimsen Puja (vii) Losar (viii) Saga Dawa (ix) Lhabab Duechen (x) Drupka Teshi (xi) Bhumchu (xii) Eid ul-Fitr (xiii) Muharram (xiv) Christmas Day 8.4 Folk Dance: Maruni 8.5 Major Religious Places: (i) Rumtek Monastery (ii) Enchey Monastery (iii) Rinchenpong Monastery (iv) Lachen Monastery (v) Ganesh Tok (vi) Hanuman Tok (vii) Pal Zurmang Kagyud Monastery (viii) SA – Ngor Monastery (ix) Baba Harbhajan Singh Memorial Temple |
| 9 Education | 9.1 State Literacy Data: (i) Total: 444,952 (81.42%) (ii) Male: 251,269 (86.55%) (iii) Female: 193,683 (75.61%) 9.2 Major Universities: (i) Sikkim Manipal University, Gangtok (ii) Sikkim University, Tadong (iii) EIILM University, Jorethang (iv) ICFAI University, Gangtok (v) SRM University, Gangtok (vi) Vinayaka Missions Sikkim University, Gangtok 9.3 Major Institutions: NIT Ravangla |
| 10 Tourism | 10.1 Sikkim is a state known for its tourist attractions. So it is one of the most important industries here. 10.2 Major Tourist Spots: (i) Bermoik Monastery (ii) Chawayng Ani Monastery (iii) Dalling Monastery (iv) Dubdi Monastery (v) Enchey Monastery (vi) Gnathang Monastery (vii) Hee Gyathang Monastery (viii) Karthok Monastery (ix) Rumtek Monastery (x) Jorethang Loop Hydroelectric project (xi) Rangit Dam (xii) Dzuluk (xiii) Gangtok (xiv) Yuksom (xv) Lake Menmecho (xvi) Samiti Lake (xvii) Tso Lhamo Lake (xviii) Amitabh Bachchan Falls (xix) Banjhakri Falls and Energy Park (xx) Tsuklakhang Palace |
| 11 Sports | 11.1 State Game: The state of Sikkim is a beautiful place where anyone can spend their vacations with joy and spirit. Being a small state located in the foot hills of the great Himalayas, it is also popular for its adventure sports like rafting, trekking, yak riding and mountaineering besides its scenic beauty. 11.2 Major Stadium: (i) Baichung Stadium, Namchi (ii) Paljor Stadium, Gangtok (iii) Jorethang Ground, Jorethang 11.3 International Players from the state: Football: (i) Bhaichung Bhutia (ii) Kunzang Bhutia (iii) Lako Phuti Bhutia (iv) Namgyal Bhutia (v) Sonam Bhutia (vi) Thupden Bhutia (vii) Ashish Chettri (viii) Nirmal Chettri (ix) Pem Dorji Mountaineering: (i) Sonam Gyatso (ii) Phu Dorjee |
| 12 Governance & Administrative Divisions | 12.1 Administrative divisions: (i) Number of Districts: 6 (ii) Number of Tehsils: 9 (iii) Number of Police Stations: 29 (iv) Number of Urban Towns: 9 (v) Number of Villages: 452 12.2 Official Languages: (i) English (ii) Nepali (iii) Sikkimese (iv) Lepcha Additional Official Languages: (i) Gurung (ii) Limbu (iii) Magar (iv) Mukhia (v) Newari (vi) Rai (vii) Sherpa (viii) Tamang (Based on census-2011) 12.3 Constituent Facts: (i) Number of Assembly seats: 32 (ii) Number of Parliament seats: 1 (iii) Number of Rajya Sabha Seats: 1 (iv) Legislature: Unicameral 12.4 Chief Minister: Prem Singh Tamang (From 27 May, 2019 (1st Tenure) (From 10 June, 2024 (2nd Tenure) First Chief Minister: Kazi Lhendup Dorjee (1974) 12.5 Governor: Om Prakash Mathur (From 27 July, 2024) First Governor: B. B. Lal (1975) 12.6 Judiciary: 12.6.1 The Sikkim High Court was established on 16th May, 1975. 12.6.2 The seat of the court is at Gangtok, the administrative capital of the state. (i) Number of Judges: 3 (ii) Judge Retirement Age: 62 |
| 13 Other Important facts | 13.1 UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Khangchendzonga National Park 13.2 GI Tags: Sikkim Large Cardamom 13.3 Number of Archaeological Sites: (i) Dubdi Monastery (ii) Coronation Throne of Norbugang near Yuksam (iii) Rabdentse site of ancient capital of Sikkim 13.4 State Symbols: State Animal: Red Panda State Bird: Blood Pheasant State Flower: Noble dendrobium State Tree: Rhododendron |
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