Gyalshing district

Gyalshing District or Geyzing District^[3] is a district of the Indian state of Sikkim. Its headquarter is Geyzing, also known as Gyalshing. The district is a favourite with trekkers due to the high elevations. Other important towns include Pelling and Yuksom. Local people also call it as Pallo-Sikkim and Sano-Sikkim commonly.

Gyalshing district
District
Geyzing district
Rabdentse Palace in Rabdentse in Gyalshing district, Sikkim
Location in Sikkim
Coordinates: 27°17′N 88°15′E
Country	India
State	Sikkim
Headquarters	Gyalshing or Geyzing
Government
• District Collector (DC)	Smt Yishey D. Yongda [1]
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	71,675
Time zone	UTC+05:30 (IST)
ISO 3166 code	IN-SK
Vehicle registration	SK-02, SK-06
Website	gyalshing.nic.in

History

Gyalshing district is the site of the ancient state capital Yuksom. It served as Sikkim's capital beginning in 1642 for almost 50 years until it was shifted to Rabdentse. The district was under the occupation of the Nepalese for 30 years in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. After Anglo-Nepalese War (1814–16), the district was returned to Sikkim.

Geography

Gyalshing district covers an area of 1,166 square kilometres (450 sq mi). Attractions include the Khecheopalri Lake, where, according to legend, not a leaf is allowed to fall on the surface of the lake and the Dubdi Monastery, the first monastery of the state.

Assembly constituencies

The district was previously divided into 5 assembly constituencies.

• Yoksam-Tashiding (BL)
• Yangthang
• Maneybung-Dentam
• Gyalshing-Barnyak
• Rinchenpong (BL)

National protected area

• Khangchendzonga National Park (Part)

Economy

The economy is mainly agrarian, despite most of the land being unfit for cultivation owing to the precipitous and rocky slopes.

Transport

Roads are in poor condition owing to the frequent landslides.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census Gyalshing district has a population of 136,435,^[2] roughly equal to the nation of Grenada.^[4] This gives it a ranking of 608th in India (out of a total of 640).^[2] The district has a population density of 117 inhabitants per square kilometre (300/sq mi) .^[2] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 10.58%.^[2] It has a sex ratio of 941 females for every 1000 males,^[2] and a literacy rate of 78.69%.^[2]

After bifurcation the district had a population of 71,675. 5.60% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes made up 3,391 (4.73%) and 31,847 (44.43%) of the population respectively.^[2]: 59

The people are mainly of Limbu descent. Other ethnic groups include the Lepcha and Bhutia communities. Nepali is the most widely spoken language in the district.

Religion

Religion in Gyalshing district (2011)[5]
Hinduism			60.07%
Buddhism			25.99%
Other (mainly Kirat Mundhum)			6.73%
Christianity			6.06%
Islam			0.94%
Other or not stated			0.21%

Kirateshwar Mahadev Temple

Hinduism is followed by majority of the people in the district. Buddhism followed by a considerable population. ^[6]

The Kirateshwar Mahadev Temple, a major Hindu pilgrimage centre in Sikkim, is situated in Legship in the district. ^[7]

Languages

Languages of Gyalshing district (2011)

  Nepali (51.85%)

  Limbu (22.61%)

  Lepcha (8.68%)

  Bhotia (7.05%)

  Sherpa (2.69%)

  Rai (1.55%)

  Hindi (1.48%)

  Others (4.09%)

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 51.85% of the population in the district spoke Nepali, 22.61% Limbu, 8.68% Lepcha, 7.05% Bhotia, 2.69% Sherpa, 1.55% Rai and 1.48% Hindi as their first language.^[8]

Flora and fauna

Natural view of mountain ranges in Gyalshing district

Gyalshing district houses a great diversity of flora and fauna, many of which are used by Indigenous and local communities.^[9] Since most of the district is hilly it enjoys a temperate climate. Above 3,800 m (12,000 ft) the slopes are full of rhododendron forests.

In 1977, the district became home to Khangchendzonga National Park, which has an area of 1,784 km² (688.8 sq mi).^[10] It shares the park with North Sikkim district.^[11]

Divisions

Administrative divisions

Three chortens in Rabendtse

Glacier valley near Thangshing

Mount Pandim

Scenes from the district

Gyalshing district is divided into two sub-divisions:^[12]

A clickable map of West Sikkim exhibiting its two subdivisions.

Name	Headquarters	Number of villages[13]	Location
Gyalshing	Gyalshing
Soreng	Soreng

References

1. "District Collectors". sikkim.gov.in. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
2. "District Census Hand Book – Sikkim" (PDF). Census of India. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.
3. "thetelegraph.com". Archived from the original on 30 October 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
4. US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison:Population". Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 1 October 2011. Grenada 108,419 July 2011 est.
5. "East Sikkim District Religion Census 2011". Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
6. "Table C-01 Population by Religion: Sikkim". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
7. "Some of the Religious Places of Sikkim". Cultural Affairs & Heritage Department. Government of Sikkim. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
8. "Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Sikkim". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.
9. O'Neill, Alexander; et al. (29 March 2017). "Integrating ethnobiological knowledge into biodiversity conservation in the Eastern Himalayas". Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 13 (21): 21. doi:10.1186/s13002-017-0148-9. PMC 5372287. PMID 28356115.
10. O'Neill, Alexander (29 March 2017). "Sikkim claims India's first mixed-criteria UNESCO World Heritage Site" (PDF). Current Science. 112 (5): 893–994. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
11. Indian Ministry of Forests and Environment. "Protected areas: Sikkim". Archived from the original on 23 August 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
12. Sikkim Administrative Divisions (PDF) (Map). The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India, New Delhi, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 October 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
13. "MDDS e-Governance Code (Sikkim Rural)" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2011.

External links

• Official district website