Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling has appealed to the people of the state, especially the youth, to use the resumption of Sino-Indian border trade through Nathula as a major instrument for economic growth.
"We look forward to seeing the Sikkimese people and especially the youth playing a crucial role in trading through the route. They must try to take advantage of the route as an economic instrument for the development of the state," Chamling told reporters in Gangtok after returning from Nathu La which was reopened after 44 years on Thursday.
The resumption of trade through the pass had the potential to change the basic structure of the Sikkimese economy by leading to greater focus on the state's comparative advantages like scientific harnessing of its natural resources and fresh emphasis on eco-tourism and other service related activities, Chamling said.
Attributing the reopening of the route to the consistent efforts of his government in that direction, the chief minister said his next priorities would
be having a bus service between Gangtok and Lhasa and integrating trade with tourism.
Chamling expressed displeasure over West Bengal Urban Development minister Ashok Bhattacharya and Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council Chairman Subhash Ghising's deciding not to attend the funtion held at the border on Thursday to mark the reopening of the route.
"I had invited both of them to attend the inaugural ceremony but they chose to stay away from the historic occasion," Chamling said adding in the long run Nathula could be of more benefit to West Bengal than to Sikkim.
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