Golay meets Prime Minister, raises key issues of Sikkim

Sikkim CM meets PM Modi, urges Rs. 3673.25 Cr from Centre for post flood reconstruction

IANS, New Delhi, June 24, 2024 : Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Golay called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament House on Monday. CM Golay presented the Post Disaster Need Assessment (PDNA) report, estimating Rs. 3,673.25 crore for recovery and reconstruction, and emphasised the need for continued support. He thanked the PM for his prompt relief after the Sikkim Glacial Lake Outburst Flood in October 2023.

The Chief Minister, in his social media, wrote for a permanent solution for National Highway 10, the only lifeline for Sikkim, damaged in the wake of GLOF and Monsoon 2024. He shared, "Given the strategic importance of NH-10, I requested a permanent solution to its frequent disruptions and proposed entrusting its maintenance to a Central Agency like NHAI/NHIDCL. I also sought urgent intervention to restore NH-310A, which connects Gangtok to the Indo-China border, following recent cloudbursts in North Sikkim".

During the meeting with the PM, Golay also proposed connectivity through the Himalayan Railway Line. He informed, "A proposal to develop a Himalayan Railway Line between Bakrakote in West Bengal and Rorathang in Sikkim, along with historical correspondence from 1917, was also presented".

The PM was also presented with Sikkim's initiative to build a multimodal corridor with an integrated checkpost between Sikkim and eastern Nepal at Chewa Bhanjyang. Sikkim CM also presented the long standing demands for tribal status for 12 indigenous communities, the Limboo-Tamang seat reservation in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly, and the visit of 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorji to Sikki.

He extended invitation to the PM for celebration of 50th Statehood Day on May 16, 2025, to grace the occasion as the chief guest, which the PM is said to have accepted.

Golay also applauded the PM's initiative, 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam,' which raises awareness about environmental conservation by planting a sapling in honour of mothers. He added that Sikkim will observe this initiative on July 7, 2024.

He congratulated PM Modi on his third consecutive electoral victory and expressed confidence in his leadership. The Sikkim CM was accompanied by MPs Indra Hang Subba from Lok Sabha and Dorjee Tshering Lepcha from Rajya Sabha.