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

Chogyal Thutob Namgyal in UPU 1 Anna Postcard  

JC White had a significant influence on Sikkim. In his popular blog, Rajen Upadhaya, History Lecturer, Namchi Govt. College writes, “With the appointment of J C White as the Political Officer in 1889, Sikkim witnessed his self-styled Zamindari System. Several Lessee Landlords were created throughout Sikkim with untold powers to mortgage or confiscate the lands of innocent peasants, further, with the help of his Sikkimese protégés Claude White board upon a policy of obliterating the ancient economy of Sikkim. This paved the way for the birth of Kaziism, the Thikadari system, and all the other forced labors like Kuruwa, Kalobhari, Jharlangi, Theki-Bethi, Ghar-Lauri, etc.”. In 1889, JC White conducted a land survey, according to which each piece of land was leased to the interested landowners at various rates. A Labour tax of two rupees for every household was charged, along with an excise charge of two rupees for brewing grain alcohol. Auctions for the license to weigh and ta...

I had heard from old folks that there used to be a statue of JC White at the exact place where Jawaharlal Nehru's statue is today at Ridge Park near White Hall, Gangtok. Later on, during the early 70s, the statue was removed and replaced with the statue of the first Prime Minister of India. JC White's statue had gone missing until it was again found and kept at Smile Land near Ranipool. My fantasy about JC White grew with each passing day and I just wanted to know more about his persona.  John Claude White, a British engineer, was sent to Sikkim in 1887, and he peacefully handled the situation at the Sikkim–Tibet front. A year later, he was again sent to Sikkim as an Assistant Political Officer with the British Expeditionary Force. With the defeat of the Tibetans during the 1888-89 conflicts, the power of control over the small Himalayan kingdom of Sikkim came under British rule.  A new post as Political Officer of Sikkim was created, thus making John Claude White an a...

This vintage post cards of the 40 Maharajas of India had a surprise face of Chogyal Thutob Namgyal. source: ebay

Left to Right: D.E.Holland, Ugyen Wangchuck, John Claude White, Thutop Namgyel and his consort Yeshe Drolma . Standing from left to right: Bhutanese guard, Capt. Henry Hyslop, Ugyen Dorje, Lobsang Choden, Jerung Dewan, Burmiak Kazi, Bhutanese guard, Sikkimese guard. (Photo by unidentified photographer, print from Fondation Alexandra David Neel, Digne) This historic photograph was clicked when the King and Queen of Sikkim was invited at Calcutta Durbar during the occasion of the visit of the Prince and Princes of Wales in 1905. For those who wanted more information on Sir Thutob Namgyal, he was the first person from Sikkim to be knighted by the Queen of England with the "Sir" title. He is the same person under whose name the the famous hospital at Gangtok is situated. STNM stands for Sir Thutob Namgyal Memorial Hospital was build in 1917. photo: bhutan2008.bt ted to the Calcutta Durbar in 1905 on the occasion of the visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales