Approximately 129 kilometres away from Gangtok is the quaint town of Lachen. Snow-capped mountains, serene lakes, treks to view the vibrant rhododendron&mdashit&rsquos no surprise that this tiny town of merely 2,500 people attracts around one lakh tourists annually. However, while a tourism boost does add to the economy, it also contributes to pollution. Many tourists leave behind countless numbers of plastic bottles.
In an attempt to change the current situation, the local community has taken the initiative of offering a more eco-friendly solution. The town will soon offer bamboo bottles to the tourists.
These will be launched at the Lachan Losar festival (a harvest festival) later this year. The bamboo bottles are being sourced from Assam through Sikkim Rajya Sabha MP Hishet Lachungpa. Currently, 1,000 bottles have been ordered for this purpose.
This is not the town&rsquos first attempt to fight the use of unsustainable materials. In 1998, Sikkim became the first state in the country to impose restrictive measures on the use of plastic. Lachen also imposed a blanket ban on packaged drinking water in government offices in 2016. Visitors also would have to either abandon their bottles while entering or transfer the water into reusable bottles. The latter is available at most stores in the town. Lachen has also been in the media&rsquos attention earlier for its complete ban on single-use plastic.
