Tourist inflow in Sikkim up 10% in 2007

An estimated 351,000 visitors visited the picturesque state in 2007 compared with 322,000 in 2006, a rise of about 10 per cent, tourism department sources said today.

Of the 351,000 tourists visiting the state last year, 331,000 were domestic visitors, while the number of foreign tourists stood at 19,844.

This was against 302,000 domestic tourists and 20,005 foreigners visiting the state in 2006.

The figures showed, while the number of domestic tourists visiting the Himalayan state jumped by about 10 per cent last year, the corresponding figure of the foreign tourists dipped marginally at 18,844 as against 20,055 in 2006.

The months of April and May last year saw a significant increase in the number of domestic tourists at 51,231 and 59,621 as people from across the country thronged the cool state to stave off from heatwave conditions.

The bulk of foreign tourists, however, visited the state in the months of October and November to enjoy the spells of snowfalls in the Himalayan state.

A cursory analysis of the tourists' inflow in Sikkim in past three years indicated a consistent growth in the number of domestic tourists at 251,000 in 2005, 302,000 in 2006 and 331,000 in 2007. The corresponding figure of the number of tourists from foreign countries to India remained stagnant over these years at 1.85 million in 2005, 2 million in 2006 and 1.98 million in 2007.

The Pawan Kumar Chamling government has proposed to develop tourism-related infrastructure to lure the visitors which also included setting up pilgrimage centres, Buddhist circuits, temples and religious structures.

A war memorial at Sherathang near the Sino-Indian border at Nathu La, Saramsa Garden, sports activities like mountain biking, ice skating, trekking, has already been put in place to draw tourists, a tourism department official said.

Infrastructures, like road communication, accomodation at high altitude places, were also being beefed up to enable visitors spend more time.

The tourism ministry is touted as the core of state's economy, with visitors spending about Rs 50 crore annually, which in turn sustains the hotel industry and people associated with this sector.