SIKKIM chief minister Pawan Chamling would appear to have a Yes Minister-type of cabinet. He has been ruling the state for 13 years and has to contend with just one opposition legislator in the 32-member assembly. Though Chamling has many an election-winning pledge to fulfil, his list of achievements has been impressive. Sikkim today is the darling of domestic and foreign tourists and the state has also made tremendous progress in the field of education. Chamling envisions his fiefdom as one where citizens will traverse macadamised roads and villagers, even in the remote areas, will have electricity. There are whispers, though, that his government has done precious little in areas where his party — the Sikkim Democratic Forum — has no influence. He has even predicted such prosperity that will, in a few decades, result in every Sikkimese being a crorepati (by hitting the jackpot in Sikkim’s online lotteries?)! Realising that electricity is the key to development and progress, the government is concentrating on harnessing the state’s power potential of 8,000 MW. Having abandoned the ambitious 530-MW Rathrongchu hydel project in north Sikkim halfway through in the late 1990s following stiff opposition from local inhabitants, the government has decided to implement the Teesta state hydro project in Lachen valley, in north Sikkim. But the Lachenpas are determined not disallow this and have vowed to protect their “cultural and natural heritage”. Another hydel project at Dzongu, also in north Sikkim, is facing strong opposition from the Lepchas. Some are reportedly on a hunger strike in Gangtok since June and protests have cascaded to Kalimpong and Darjeeling and also Kolkata. According to Kolkata Rong Sejum, “Dzongu embodies the spirit of the Lepchas. The origin of the Lepchas, the different clans, customs and rites are all traced to Dzongu. Every birth, marriage and death ritual in a Lepcha family is firmly based on references to Dzongu.” It says the Lepchas’ spiritual sanctum sanctorium will be destroyed once the hydel project comes up. A KRS spokesman alleged that if any government employee is heard opposing the project he is punished with immediate transfer to a remote area. But why were the Lachenpas and Lepchas silent when these projects were conceived and in the planning stage? Surely, if the government had consulted the locals on matters as important and emotional as these and taken them into confidence, perhaps it would not have found itself in an embarrassing situation. Both sides appear to be at fault. A way out must be found wherein neither side is seen to lose
(The Statesman)
