The frequent blockades of NH 31 A, the only access route to the landlocked north-eastern state has prompted Sikkim to propose to the Centre that the state be allowed an alternative access route from Bhutan.

The state Government made this proposal to the Union Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways (MORTH) and the Home Ministry at a recent meeting and is set to start a recee of the potential route via Bhutan in early September.

Sikkim, linked to the rest of the country with a tenuous, 5-metre wide NH 31-A, is almost running out of essential commodities due to the closure of its only link to the rest of India. The highway often remains closed to traffic either due to bandhs called by protestors of various groups or landslides. The most recent instance was the blockade imposed by the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) in July.

With no railhead or airport, the state’s infrastructure is heavily hemmed in by the 41-km NH 31A from Siliguri to Gangtok. Sikkim shares a sensitive international border with China, making connectivity a critical concern.

Sikkim Additional Secretary T T Dorjee confirmed that various alternative routes were being studied and the West Bengal Government’s concurrence was also being sought to ensure that the state’s essential supplies are not affected by protests or landslides. The tentative length of the new road from Gangtok to Chalsa in West Bengal, via Bhutan, is expected to be around 90 km. Of this around 40 km will fall in Bhutan.

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