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AsiaIS >India > Sikkim >Introduction
| S I
K K I M |
| Sikkim is picturesque and verdant with clean crisp
air, deep blue mountain lakes, gorgeous Buddhist monasteries and hillsides ablaze with
rhododendrons against a backdrop of snow-clad mountains. If you are looking for exciting
trekking routes in unspoilt terrain, or a quiet communion with the mountains, there are
few places in India that would match the Himalayan state of Sikkim. This tiny state,
bigger only than Goa and Delhi and India’s least populated, lies tucked in between
Nepal and Bhutan in India’s eastern region. |
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Just 110 kms from north to south and
60 kms across, Sikkim is entirely mountainous with altitudes varying from 800 ft in the
south to the 28,199 ft. Mt. Kanchenjunga, in the northwest (India’s highest peak, and
the third highest in the world). The awesome mountain is revered by the Sikkimese as their
protecting deity. The capital of the state, Gangtok is an attractive and interesting town
in eastern Sikkim, well developed and with absolutely amazing views of the snow clad
Himalayan peaks including the Kanchenjunga. |
F A C
T B O X |
| Area |
7300 sq km |
| Population |
540,493 (2001) |
| Capital City |
Gangtok |
| Language |
Nepali, Bhutia, Lepcha, Hindi |
| Districts |
4 (East, South, West, North) |
Religion |
Hinduism, Tibetan Buddhism |
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