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North Sikkim district, officially named as Mangan district, is a district of the state of Sikkim. Its district headquarters is Mangan. It is the seventh least populous district in the country (out of 640).
The most prominent effect of the steepness of the valleys is the prevalence of landslides that at times drop debris anything between carrying devastation along their course. Most of them are caused either by melting snow beds on top of the mountains or by erosive action of monsoon rains.
Most of the people of the state reside near Mangan, the district headquarters which is about above sea level. Further north the elevation increases with the vegetation turning from temperate to alpine climate to tundra. Temperatures range from about to below in the extreme high reaches where the altitude is in excess of . Kanchenjunga is the highest peak at over , straddling its western border with Nepal and can be seen clearly from the town of Singhik.
The region has many power projects and enjoys almost uninterrupted electricity. The steep gradient and the innumerable lakes on the higher reaches facilitate ideal conditions for generation of hydro electric power.
In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named North Sikkim one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). It is the only district in Sikkim currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).
The people are mainly of Lepcha and Bhutia descent. Other groups include the Tibetan community. It also has one of the lowest populated regions of the state.
In 1977 North Sikkim district became home to Khangchendzonga National Park, which has an area of . It shares the park with West Sikkim district. It is also home to the Shingba (rhododendron) Wildlife Sanctuary, which was established in 1984 and has an area of .
Tourism
Most of North Sikkim is restricted to travellers and permits are needed to visit these areas. The area, which shares a sensitive border with the People's Republic of China is heavily patrolled by the Indian army. However, owing to the natural environment and scenery, a large number of tourists have started visiting the region. Often unregulated tourism becomes a conservation issue in fragile ecosystem such as high mountains.Choudhury, A.U. (2011). Tourism pressure on high elevation IBAs. Mistnet 12(1): 11–12.
Divisions
Administrative divisions
North Sikkim is divided into two sub-divisions:
Name Headquarters Number of villages Population
(2011)Area Location
Demographics
According to the 2011 census Mangan district has a population of 43,709, roughly equal to the nation of Liechtenstein. This gives it a ranking of 634th in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of . Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was 5.66%. North Sikkim has a sex ratio of 769 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 77.39%. 10.62% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 2.25% and 65.70% of the population respectively.
Religion
Buddhism is followed by majority of the people in Mangan district. Hinduism followed by a considerable population.
Languages
At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 31.71% of the population in the district spoke Lepcha language, 23.24% Nepali language, 14.41% Sikkimese, 8.51% Limbu language, 6.40% Hindi, 3.63% Sherpa language, 2.56% Tamang language, 1.75% Punjabi language, 1.62% Bhojpuri, 1.22% Rai languages and 1.08% Bengali language as their first language.
Transport
Roads are in a poor condition owing to the frequent landslides.
Flora and fauna
North Sikkim is home to the red panda ( Ailurus fulgens), a vulnerable species.Choudhury, A.U. (2001). An overview of the status and conservation of the red panda Ailurus fulgens in India, with reference to its global status. Oryx 35(3):250–259 This animal is the pride of Sikkim and is also the State Animal. It is generally found between heights of 2000 m to 4000 m. It is as big as a domestic Siamese cat (approximately 2 ft long), has a triangular shaped face with a stripe on its cheek, with red fur and black eyes. It has a sprinkling of white on its back and chest. The tail is bushy, black or brown in colour and long like that of a skunk. They generally live on treetops.
Important Towns and Cities
Banking Facilities
The following Banks provide banking facilities in North Sikkim, district of Sikkim:
External links
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