Gangtok- "Nothing is permanent Except Change"

M.G Marg Gangtok during 1973 protest Pic. courtesy sikkimonline.info

Somebody has correctly quoted the topic of today’s post. Nothing is static in this world, it keeps on changing. The present capital of Sikkim has also witnessed a lively change over the past 50 years. If we have to believe on the writings of James Claude White, the First British Political Officer of Sikkim, Gangtok during his stay was just a small town which was probably situated at present day Lall Bazaar. Gangtok made its dawdling progress after British established their upper hand in the internal politics of Sikkim. The establishment of British Residency at Gangtok saw the beginning of concrete buildings with a European design. During the exile of Maharaja Thotub Namgyal, construction of the marvelous edifice of Residency was over. But, even during the last years of Maharaja Thotub Namgyal Gangtok was merely confined between Sikkim Palace and British Residency.

Bullock Cart and a truck plying together on the road to Gangtok  Pic. Courtesy http://sikhim.blogspot.com

After the Indian Independence when the charge of protection of Sikkim was handed over to her new master, the dimension of Gangtok was slightly elaborated. It was now extended up to present day M.G. Road, which has presently got a beautiful walking mall. In 1948, an Indian adventurer Mr. A.D. Moodie, while going to climb Lama Aden in North Sikkim has visited Gangtok. During a brief interview with me he has stated that it was a small market where people during Haat Day came for shopping. The means of communication at Gangtok then was bullock cart by which the Indian merchants based at Gangtok and other towns in Sikkim brought their commodities from Siliguri. But, during other days today’s M.G. Road used to remain silent. In a documentary prepared in 1966, Gangtok has been shown in an exact manner which is stated by Mr. Moodie during his interview with me. Even after the span of nearly 18 years (1948-1966) Gangtok was having its Haat at today’s M.G. Road itself crowded with the villagers from far flung places. The only difference one can find in the said documentary and Mr. Moddie’s statement is that, the bullock carts were replaced by big trucks as the core means of communication and the old tin houses were in the process of replacement by concrete buildings. It is to be mentioned here that amid to the establishment of Sikkim Nationalized Transport in 1944, bullock carts were popularly used as a cheap means of communication in Sikkim.

“The year 1955 also witnessed the first Tata Mercedes Benz Truck; Model L 312/36 being use on the road from Gangtok to Rangpo, Gangtok- Darjeeling daily Passenger service in land rovers was also introduced. An agreement for the counter signature of route permits by the West Bengal Authorities and of Sikkim State Transport vehicle was negotiated”. (http://sikhim.blogspot.com)

View of Gangtok in the 70s Pic. Courtesy Mr. Shital Pradhan

Gangtok began to make its rapid progress after 1960s. The earlier small township of Gangtok was in the process of a massive change. The establishment of various Government Offices in every nook and corner of Gangtok mark the beginning of modernization of the capital. It is to be noted here that during Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal’s wedding with American Hope Cooke the Capital town of the former Himalayan Kingdom was having a distinct identity as far as organization and cleanliness was concerned. It is said that Gangtok then was nicely organized as compare to the other Capitals of it neighbouring Himalayan Kingdoms.

Over all these years, Gangtok has changed a lot. The earlier years it has witnessed are going to be disappear in the pages of History. The small town which hardly had a thousand population (in its initial years) has now a Municipal Corporation. Once, a silent Gangtok has now become a busiest place crammed with locals and outsiders. Probably due to its huge traffic some one has rightly termed Gangtok as Manchester of the East. 

M. G Road today pic. courtesy sikkimonline.info

J. C. White the First British Political Officer of Sikkim

Being sandwiched between warring nations, Sikkim lost much of its territory to the Bhutanese invaders in 1788, to the Nepalese invaders in 1789 and was forced to cede beautiful hills of Darjeeling in 1835 to the British for their ‘selfless’ help in repelling the Gorkha invaders. The un-demarcated Sikkim-Tibet frontier also greatly suffered the sandwiched Sikkim. In 1885, British Indian Government sent Macaulay Mission to Tibet but had to abort due to the Tibetan occupation of a fort at Lingtu. For almost five years from 1885 to 1890 Sikkim had to resist pressure from both North and the South. It was only after the Anglo-Chinese Convention the frontier between Sikkim and Tibet was delimited.

J.C White Sitting cross leg position, on his right  Sir Ugen Wangchuk Prime Minister of Bhutan. This picture abides copyright of British Library, London (www.bl.uk)

It was at this juncture, the British Indian Government appointed J.C. White as a Political Officer in Sikkim. An Engineer by profession Mr. White had a huge responsibility to solace the confrontational powers i.e. Tibet and India and to maintain peace and security in the Sangri-la. It was in the month of November 1887 Mr. White first visited Sikkim. On the outbreak of Sikkim-Tibet war 1888, he was sent as an Assistant Political Officer with peditionary force, and on conclusion of peace the following year he was offered the post of Political Officer in administrative charge of the State of Sikkim. On the subject of his appointment as the Political Officer he comments- “Naturally I gladly accepted an appointment which would give me an opportunity of living in a country I was sp anxious to see more of, and I have never regretted my decision; although in consequence of the view taken by the Government of India of my special employment oon the frontier, and the fact that I left the Public Works Department to take up this appointment, I have been a looser from a pecuniary point of view to a very large extent”…

Regarding his service in Sikkim he  writes “ At the conclusion of hostilities the Government of India made a proposal that I should remain in Sikkim, with the title of Political Officer, and administer the affaires of the state in conjunction with a Council composed of the Chief Dewans, Lamas and Kazis, and of which I was to be President”.

After the appointment of Mr. White as the Political Officer of Sikkim the British Government decided to remove Maharaja Thotub Namgyal and Maharani Yeshey Dolma from Sikkim to Kurseong, in Darjeeling District of British India. After their removal, Mr. White became the de-facto ruler of the Kingdom. It was during his tenure as a Political Officer Sikkim witnessed the birth of  Zamindari System, Thikadari System Kalobhari, Jharlangi and Theki-bethi.