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

SINGTAM, March 16: A felicitation program was organized at the school premises of Adarsh Vidhya Mandir (AVM), Singbel, East Sikkim on March 14. Shital Pradhan , a teacher and a blogger was the Chief Guest of the day. The event also saw the presence of B.B. Chettri (Headmaster, Dipudara Primary School), Lomas Dhungel (Founder cum Developer, Hariyo Makha), Bhim Prasad Nepal (1971 Bangladesh war veteran), along with SMCs, SHGs, students and locals. The event was the celebration of the success story of Hariyo Makha initiative. Lomas Dhungel led Hariyo Makha initiative had shared his idea on upcycling plastics for book covers to Ajambari Self Help Group (Singbel) for a social experiment on cleanliness. For this purpose, a small Plastic Collection centre was established at Singbel in November last year.  More than 300 volunteers including the public, students and teachers from 11 government and 2 private schools from both East and South districts had collected and donated ...

India Gate was the first name I had in my list of places I did not want to miss. Have seen this national monument in television and on screens for umpteen times since ages I was dumb fold to make my head rise to the sky to watch this build 42 meters high. It was designed by the famous architect Edwin Lutyens. India gate was earlier named All India War Memorial.  The design of the Indian gate is almost similar to its French counterpart war memorial, the Arc-de-Triomphe. Names of over 70,000 Indian Soldiers who laid their life for in WWI are inscribed on a red wall of the monuments for who the monuments are dedicated.  Faintly seen is the Rashtrapati Bhawan from India Gate  At the base of the India gate there is another memorial, the Amar Jawan Jyoti that was added after independence. This eternal flame was lighted in commemoration of the unknown soldiers who laid their lives to serve this nation.  

In Memorium On 10th Death Anniversary Capt. Ganju Lama VC MM PD (7 July 1922 - 1 July 2000) Time takes away the edge of grief But memory turns back every leaf Gone from our lives one so dear But in our hearts forever near. Time changes many things but not the Memory this day brings Till now you are still in our minds and hearts for the love and lessons of life that u gave us Memories are like leaves of gold They never tarnish or grow old Locked in our hearts, You will always be Loved and remembered , For all eternity It isn't what we write, It isn't what we say Its how we feel deep inside As we think of you today... ten years on..   Deeply remembered and missed by all Pema Chuki Kazini (Wife) & All Family Members & Relatives

I found this photograph inside a monastery at Gnathang, near Nathula Border. Very little is known about these people but the local people added that the person sitting was the Rimpoche of the Gnathang Monastery and the people surrounding were Sikkimese officials from British Administration.  Gnathang, situated at around 12,000 feet above sea level is the most crucial place in Sikkim that changed the political scenario of Sikkim's royal administration. A battle was fought between the British and Tibetans where with the defeat of the Tibetans, Sikkim too came under the scanner of becoming the British Protectorate. Thus Sikkim's administration went into the hands of the British. the year was 1890.  30.09.24: Mentioned on Facebook Page 'Naldjor' Tsampa Lama Ngathang Lingpa -  He is also known as Burma Lama (bur ma bla ma) as he later left Sikkim and went to Burma. Some even say he originally came from Burma. Actually some twenty years ago there arrived a letter from Ran...

There were rumours in the streets that army vehicle would take over the National Highway for three days to transport warfare to Sikkim border, to which few days back the army personal had denied the news as baseless and disclosed no plans doing such in days to come too, as published in a local newspaper and all of a sudden there is this news published in internet about India, China armies clash in Sikkim. So whats the truth...whats cooking up? from Google news Extracted from Pakistan Defence India, China armies clash in Sikkim? The Indian and Chinese armies have reportedly been locked in sporadic exchanges of fire in Sikkim, where the two countries share a high-altitude border, since Tuesday night. A senior defence ministry official in Kolkata, where the Eastern Command is based, said the conflict had been on at Nathu-la pass — 54 km east of Sikkim’s capital Gangtok. In a statement issued on Thursday, the Ministry of Defence, however, denied any shooting on the border. The defence offi...

I came upon a blog of pukuli (sounds intresting, don't go by the name of the blogger). I even used to have a sister by this name and her name did made me nostalgic. Nevertheless i came through her blog that the LIFE website is publishing around 10 million of photographs from the archives of LIFE magazine. Here i took upon a chance to see whether there are any photographs related to Sikkim and i am glad i did so. There are few photographs clicked by Bill Ray during the India-China tussle of 1965, the area most probably is Nathula Border. The photographs shows army-men of India and China. 1.Chinese troops on Sikkim-Tibet border 2.Chinese troops on Sikkim-Tibet border 3. Indian soldier patrols on frontier between Sikkim and Tibet 4. Indian soldier on Sikkim-Tibet border 5. Life photograher Bill Ray (CR) with Indian soldiers

BY ROSHNI SUBBA for Explore Sikkim In the year 1826 two British officers, Campbell and Dr Hooker came to the Singalila area to search out the easiest excess to Tibet from India . On their tour of this region, they halted for a night in the old Gorkha Station at Ghoom Bhanjang. In the morning they saw the glamorous view of the full range of Kanchenjunga in wonderful colours during the time of sunrise. The climate of the place was cold much similar to that of their home town in England . The chilled climate of the area makes an impression upon them very much, so with great consideration of the two Britishers the hill station of Darjeeling was established.  Building structures, road and rail networks and bridges were constructed by the East India Company by the end of the 18th century where still to this day there are monuments in and around Darjeeling that have proudly and with pride stand the last ten decades. The Town Hall (also know...

BY PHILIP RAI Recently a woman named Rachel Ellison was awarded an Order of the Member of the British Empire (MBE). She had set up a radio show called Afghan Woman's Hour in Afghanistan under the aegis of British Broadcasting Corporation. She was given the honour for promoting human rights and female empowerment in the country. This piece of news reminded me of a WWII veteran Gurkha, Major Kunjalal Moktan who too had been awarded with an order of MBE. The MBE was given to him in recognition of his efforts at helping the Britishers reconstitute the partition torn Brigade of Gurkhas at Malaya (Malaysia). Albeit, ‘the order has attracted some criticism for its connection with the idea of the British Empire. Many famous personalities including Benjamin Zephaniah have rejected the MBE saying it reminded of "thousands of years of brutality—it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalized”. Nevertheless, a Gurkha to have received an MBE fo...