Road-tripping in Sikkim? Get ready for penalties if found minus this one item

In a move that will be celebrated by environmentalists and everyone else who appreciates the pristine beauty of India's hills, the Sikkim government has made it mandatory for all tourist vehicles entering the state to also pack garbage bags. As per the state's Tourism and Civil Aviation Department, not carrying garbage bags will either lead to entry restrictions or even invite penalties.

Footfall of tourists in many of Indian hill stations has increased manifold since the end of Covid-related restrictions. But while this has resulted in bolstering of local economies, it has also often led to enormous pressure on local infrastructure. The problem of garbage collection and disposal is very real and as such, the Sikkim government has decided to make carrying garbage bags mandatory when entering the state via road.

The official communication from the state government highlights that specific instructions have been issued to travel agencies, tour operators and tourist car drivers to inform tourists to carry garbage bags and to use them when required. “In order to promote environmental sustainability in all the tourist destinations and to ensure community participation towards achieving this goal, Department of Tourism & Civil Aviation hereby makes it mandatory for all tourist vehicles entering the State to carry large garbage bags in their respective vehicles," the notification reads. “Further, it shall be the responsibility of concerned tour operators, travel agencies and vehicle drivers to disseminate the information about use of garbage bags for waste collection and disposal."

Check your thrash

The Sikkim government has said that it will run campaigns and clean-up events to spread the message of sustainable tourism among those visiting the state. There will also be random checks on vehicles entering Sikkim. "Department shall conduct random checks of tourist vehicle to ensure compliance of the order and any vehicle found violating the order shall be subject to penalties in terms of prescribed rule of the Department. Department shall also conduct awareness campaign and cleanliness drive to educate the tourist about garbage management and environmental sustainability," the notification reads.

(With inputs from ANI)

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