Proud to be a Sikkimese: Sikkim Travel, Culture & Local Heritage

Today was a Blue Moon, a word more popular in phrases, as we often say once in a blue moon. A blue moon simply nothing but when two full moons fell in the same calendar month, an event that usually occurred every 2½ years, indeed a rare occasion. I was wondering about some spectacular scenes across the sky but later on the  fog  failed my expectation.  The above photograph was taken at Singtam around 7,15 pm, and a small red dot near the moon is a planet Mars that happens to be a mere 61.7 million miles from Earth, isn't it interesting ?

Rangpo, 30 January:  Five days long the Community Development Seminar for the Bharat Scouts & Guides, North-East Region organized by NE Region, Guwahati commenced today at Himalayan Home, Khani Khola, Majhitar Rangpo, Sikkim. A total of 50 Nos of participants from Meghalaya, Sikkim, Manipur, Nagaland, and Mizoram, with 20 nos of Rovers & rangers from Sikkim arriving yesterday and registered themselves. In his inaugural address, Dr. H.P. Chhetri, State Chief Commissioner, BS&G, Sikkim welcomed the entire participant and highlighted the aims and objectives of the seminar. Mr. B.K. Singh, ROC, from National Headquarters, Guwahati will conduct the seminar as a Leader of the course along with other three staff members Mr. Kamaldhoj Lepcha, ASTC, Sikkim, and Mr. Manorath Dahal, SOC (S), Sikkim, and Mr. Pavan Dey from N.F. Railway. The objective of the seminar is to understand the role of scouting and guiding in the community and the concept of ...

Mrs Tilu Gurung Minister inaugurating rural marketing center at Maneydanda Namthang under South Sikkim   PIC: Sanjay Agarwal;

 from indiamike.com   River Teesta from Sevoke Coronation Bridge The River Teesta, said to be the lifeline of the Indian state of Sikkim, flows for almost the entire length of the state, carving out verdant Himalayan temperate and tropical river valleys. The emerald coloured river then forms the border between Sikkim and West Bengal before joining the Brahmaputra as a tributary in Bangladesh. The river originates from Cho Lhamu Lake at an elevation of 5,330 m (17,500 feet) above sea level in the mighty Himalayas. This lake lies to the north of the Donkia Pass near Shetschen, where the summit of the pass is about eight kilometres north-east of Darjeeling as the crow flies. The Teesta River is then fed by rivulets which arise in the Thangu, Yumthang and Donkia-La ranges. The river then flows past the town of Rangpo where it forms the border between Sikkim and West Bengal up to Teesta Bazaar. At Teesta Suspension Bridge, which joins Kalimpong with Darjeeling, th...

 Yesterday i received my certificate of the Stamp Mania 2009 held at Baroda, Gujarat. I had participated with the theme “Sikkim through Philately”.

from sikkimexpress.com Saroja Pradhan (Saroja Pradhan had topped Sikkim University in MEd and was chosen to witness the Republic Day parade from the VVIP box at Rajpath in New Delhi)   I must say I have visited Delhi several times before but this time it was really different. I felt proud to be an Indian and represent my State and the Sikkim University. We were taken good care by the Ministry of HRDD, Government of India, who organized our stay at the Janpath Hotel for three nights. I was proud to be one among the 100 toppers from different universities and schools from all around the country. There was total feeling of national integrity as I got to meet and make friends with students from all around the country and share information about our State and the Sikkim University. On the 26th after a lot of security checks we were taken to the parade vicinity. Our seats were reserved...

Paljor Stadium at Gangtok than just a Polo Ground

      Dr H P CHETTRI      Majhitar-9434021212 Rangpo, January 28: The 3 rd State Rally for the Bharat Scouts & Guides of Sikkim was concluded with the Grand Camp Fire yesterday at Himalayan Home, Khani Khola, East Sikkim. The programme had commenced from 24 th January under the sponsorship of Sikkim State Association, The Bharat Scouts & Guides. Since there was no fund available from the State Government for 2009-10 till date, the programme was conducted on loan and a person or contribution from the participants. 129 nos. of Scouts & Guides from the different Senior Secondary Schools, Secondary Schools, and Jr. High Schools of Sikkim along with 11 unit leaders had participated in this 3 rd State Rally. This Rally was held under the supervision of Dr. H.P. Chhetri, State Chief Commissnor, BS&G, Mr. D.R.Gurung, Leader of the Event, with six staff members from the State. In his valedictory ...

By AJAY THAPA Pakyong: People of Pakyong and the entire state should be proud of Miss Dimple Pradhan, daughter of Mr. Raju Pradhan, resident of Bhanuturning, Pakyong, East Sikkim, who stood first in B. Tech. in Ceramic Engineering at National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Orissa. She has been awarded a silver medal by the Institute for the year 2009 which she received from the hand of former President of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam on the seventh convocation of the NIT held on 16th January 2010. Miss Pradhan wants to do further study though many jobs have been offered to her, said her father. She was one of the students of St. Xavier’s School, who stood 1st in Class XII board examination after which she joined NIT. sikkimreporter.com

I do not know how correct I am….. But a comparative study of the so called contrail photographs from other part of the world with that of those observed in Sikkim in the last two months draws a similar conclusion. It was more of a curiosity that drew my interest into this mysterical phenomenon that had many faces gazing across the sky in inquisitiveness. I too wanted to know, what were those thick lines of clouds that were sighted on certain places of Sikkim in the last two months? I have observed people say, those clouds-like arranged in a straight line looked like the smokes of some object, stayed on the sky for some time and vanished in air. While I was preparing this article I was informed about a strange looking 6 feet long shining object that passed through the hills of Soreng at around 8 pm. An eyewitness told that the object was flying very low and it passed through the Nepal border.  Well still fresh in my mind is that photograph of UFO like object that was clicked fr...

from sikkimexpress.com This is in response to an Auction Notice issued by the Office of the Superintending Engineer, Roads & Bridges Department, Gyalshing, Government of Sikkim, regarding the auction of bridge parts of the old Rathong Suspension Bridge on the Rimbi-Yuksom Road, which belongs to the above mentioned Department. According to the Auction Notice, the salvage value of the bridge parts has been worked out at Rs. Four Lakhs Fifty Thousand, Nine Hundred Fifteen. I would like to request the Secretary of the Department if the suspension bridges in these places can be left the way it is. Suspension bridges all over the world have lots of charm and historical significance. They are a huge tourist attraction as well. Tourist visiting rural areas of Sikkim would expect the rustic charm and suspension bridges add to the allure of the place. It is indeed sad that suspension bridges in Sikkim are all dying out and very little or nothing is being done to restore and preserve ...

"A Grammar of the Rong (Lepcha) Language, as it exists in the Dorjeeling and Sikkim Hills' by Colonel G.B. Mainwaring of Bengal Staff Corps is the first book in the linguistic study of Rong language. By the favour of the British government in India, he was enable to present to the public a short grammar of the Rong in 1876, fifty six years after the publication of the first Nepali Grammar by J.A.Ayton, both printed at Calcutta."

Tsering Dorjee, a young Tibetan from Gangtok, Sikkim, was awarded black belt Go-dan degree from International Karate Do Gojukai Association (IKGA), World Headquarter, Tokyo, Japan after going through the rigorous test and competitions in Tokyo. Go-dan degree, equivalent to PhD degree is considered to be one of the highest accomplishments in martial arts world. source: www.phayul.com

    This contrail is shot from Tinkitam on January 18th, 2010, according to the photographer the contrail went through the direction of  Dentam to Gangtok across Kewzing, as he had viewed from Tinkitam. The shot was taken at 7.55 am. It is interesting to note that on the same day at Singtam the contrail had passed through 7.37 am.

Rusma Rai, a Sikkimese actress was in a news for her film "Mission love in Sikkim". She had jumped down 120 feet from a Fistel Air Helicopter in one of the stunt scene. To her comparison actor Nikhil Upreti known for his stunt that has great demand in Nepali film had jumped only from 50 feet height. pic: Himalayadarpan

This information was provided by Tenzin C. Tashi The ‘Kham-sum-ongdu’, the coat of arms of the Namgyal dynasty melds oriental symbolism with British heraldry. The symbol of religious and political government, the ‘Kham-sum-ongdu’ literally means the conqueror of the three worlds or ‘lokas’, these being: 1. ‘Kama loka’ – the world of sensual pleasure 2. ‘Rupadhatu loka’ – the realm of the material world ... 3. ‘Arupadhatu loka’ – the spiritual world or world of formless spirits The two griffins symbolise the mythological horse of Indra as well as Tachog Balaha, one of the manifestations of Avalokiteshvara or Chenrezig. The twelve rings within the shield represent the ‘twelve interdependent contributories of origination of all phenomenon.’ The eight lotus petals symbolize the Eight Fold Path which is to bring peace and harmony to Sikkim. The helmet, symbolising the defensive force of our land is crested by a conch shell which depicts the propagation of Dharma in Sikkim....

Ram Gauri Sangralaya from Rhenock had been selected to attend the workshop on Conservation of Wood and Textile and other Ethnographic objects at Bhopal. The five day long workshop started from January 19th till January 23rd was organised by Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manv Sangrahalaya, Ministry of Culture Govt. of India, Bhopal. Speaking from Bhopal, Ganesh Pradhan, President of Ram Gauri Sangralaya told that they are taught about the importance of preserving the materials. They were taken to the museum out there and necessary information about its maintenance was provided. The participating organisation included groups from North East States and others, he added. Pradhan have thanked Cultural Affairs & Heritage Department, Govt. of Sikkim for giving their museum an opportunity to attend such quality workshop that was very essential to them. Ram Gauri Sangralaya is represented by Ganesh Pradhan, Deepen Pradhana and Subhash Pradhan.

Now what is this flying object above the contrails sighted from Singtam I do not know how correct I am but….a comparative studies of the so called contrails photographs from other part of the word with that of those observed in Sikkim in the last two months draws a similar conclusion. It was more of a curiosity that drew my interest into this mysterical phenomenon that had many faces gazing across the sky in inquisitiveness. I too wanted to know, what were those thick lines of clouds that were sighted on certain places of Sikkim in the last two months? I have observed people say, those clouds arranged in a straight line looked like the smokes of some object, stayed on the sky for some time and vanished in air. The knowledge bank, Wikipedia defines a term “contrail” that means “Contrails (short for "condensation trails") or vapour trails are basically artificial clouds, visible trails of condensed water vapour, made by the exhaust of aircraft engines. As the hot exhaus...

A total of 100 meritorious students from all over India are invited every year to witness the Republic Day Parade from the Prime Minister’s Box. A moment of great prestige and recognition for the two year old Sikkim University this year as two of its students have been selected to witness the parade from the Prime Minister’s Box. The two students were selected out of the ten names recommended by the Sikkim University.  Mrs. Saroja Pradhan from Harkamaya College of Education , Tadong, Sikkim & Mr. Umesh Pradhan from Damber Singh College, Tadong, Sikkim. Mrs Saroja Pradhan, has done her M Ed from Harkamaya College of Education in the year 200-8-2009, was the topper in her batch scoring 75.88%. She has recently been deputed as Lecturer in the Govt. B.Ed College at Soreng. Umesh Pradhan, a student of Damber Sing College  in the session 2008-09, was also the topper with 71% . He completed his graduation in Library Science. Umesh Pradhan, a student of Damber Sing ...

This picture had always attracted me but i know very little about it..can anyone share more light on it.

Namthang    Namthang  Singtam   Increased resolution that shows some spherical-like object at the tip of the Singtam sightings.

These photographs shared by Prashant Pandey, a student of East Point SSS show the cloudy trails left by the object that passed through Singtam today. The photograph was taken from Lower Sawaney, West Pandam.

The thick white smokey lines that were observed on different parts of Sikkim last November again reappeared today. The unidentified smokey lines that passed through the heart of the Singtam bazaar to the other side of the hill were witnessed by large crowds at around 7.37 am this morning.  Shekher Pradhan who took the photographs told that the object did not have any sound and could not be identified whether it was a fighter plane or not. He added the object had its white smokes following a path and it took a little over 5 minutes to cross the Singtam sky. It should be noted that similar smokey lines were reported from the places of  Ravangla, Namthang, Singtam, and even Gangtok last November that was followed by reporting of 5 UFO-like objects at Sombaria.

I simply loved the theme.....a search for the biggest / oldest tree of Sikkim. No doubt this hunt for the Biodiversity Heritage Trees is an opening in understanding the floras of ancient Sikkim.  Sikkim celebrates the centenary of the Sikkim Forest Department and the motive behind this exploration is worth an applause from the Government. It is also said that the person providing the information of such trees shall also be awarded. The result of the preliminary survey has the following statistics: North Sikkim:  9 trees including a Juniper with girth of c 42 ft. South Sikkim:  13 trees including a  pipalay kabra  with girth of 29 ft, height 95 ft. East Sikkim:  10 trees including a “bar” with girth 33 ft, height 150 ft. West Sikkim:  Three famous pine in Dubdi, Yuksom complex with girth 21 ft, height 150 ft. source: Now Newspaper

Muhurat of Nepali film at Samardung near 20th mile PIC: Sanjay Agarwal

Phulmani Pradhan from Nepali Girls' High School, took her medical training in Calcutta, and was the first lady doctor in Darjeeling. Jyotsna (child in photo with Phulmani) was later a teacher at Mt. Hermon School. source: http://www.nepal.lib.ed.ac.uk/

      Singtam Mela at a glance

2011, Singtam  Autograph taken during the website launch of Kapil Thapa at Singtam 2017, Rangpo Indian Idol 4 Runner up Kapil Thapa hails from Dehradun Autograph taken on 31.12.2017, Rangpo

  Born to lead – his motto has made Chetan Sapkota different from his friends of his age group.  The second son of D.P.Sapkota and Geeta Sapkota ( Raley Khesay ), this 26-year-old lad from Singtam is the face of societal gathering across different places of Sikkim today.  Chetan Sapkota represents the youth of Sikkim . Despite his education up to standard twelve, he had been able to grab the attention of a lot since his academic years.  Former Cultural Secretary, Vice Sports Secretary at All Sikkim Student Association, Joint Secretary, and later on General Secretary of Truck Driver Association (Singtam), Sapkota has proved his mettle.  He was the Chief Assistant Director in the documentary “Sikkim on the Path to Progress” by the IPR Department.  He even had an acting stint in a Nepali motion film,  Sanjivani.   Recently, he was one of the 13 youths selected from the state of Sikkim for the week-long training at Mumbai on “Role of Trade Union in Pr...

Grungy Morphins, a band from Darjeeling is representing Indian Metal Music in an International Music Festival in Austria for which they need Votes to be able to be a part of it. They are currently in 7th position out of 296 Bands in total from across the world. They need to be in top 3 slots to be able to perform. The last date for Voting is 31st of January 2010. The winners shall have an opportunity to play with bands like; 1} Sepultura, 2} Deicide, 3} Testament, 4} Death Angel, 5} Behemoth, 6} Bolthrower to name a few in Austria in "MetalFest 2010" . For voting click the link: http://www.at.metalfest.eu/votes.php?action=voting&band_id=152 Please Note:  no false voting as all voting has to be genuine and if there is false e-mail address given than the nomination for Grungy Morphins shall be terminated. For more on Grungy Morphins do check the videos on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSvnzkrWWFM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz3b-br1b-c http:/...

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FROM MY COLLECTION Treaty between India and Sikkim 1950

    Kapil Thapa, Indian Idol 4 runner up thrills Namchi crowds dancing in his tune at Namchi Community Hall.