How Prem Singh Tamang’s people-first approach reshaped Sikkim

In just a year and a half since his election as Chief Minister of Sikkim in May 2019, Prem Singh Tamang has emerged as a transformative leader. His administration has achieved significant milestones in previously untapped sectors, marking the beginning of a new era in the state's political history.

Tamang started his political career with the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF ) in which he served various ministerial posts. Yet, in 2013 he stepped out to start a new political party which he named Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) and soon became popular among youths and the lower classes. The outcome of the 2019 Assembly elections resulted in the SKM ousting the 25 years old ruling party Sikkim Democratic Front and Tamang’s leadership brought in a people-oriented political culture.

Infrastructure has been a major focus during Tamang 's tenure. Road infrastructure has been focused with construction and upgrade of roads and bridges together with public utilities have been paramount; Pakyong Airport which is under construction also contributes significantly to connectivity of the state. Rural region has also witnessed increase in physical infrastructure such as extension of roads and other infrastructure such as water and electricity.

Education has been one of the main priorities of Tamang’s government. Some of the activities that have been embarked on include increasing scholarships for the needy students and establishment of new schools and colleges among others. Also, through the introduction of trades training programs one has been able to develop some of the young people and endow them with the necessary skills for future jobs, an aspect that evoked a positive response from the youth.

Above all, there has been much improvement in the health sector in Sikkim during Tamang's period. New hospitals were created and the quality of existing health care institutions were improved; physicians and other medical staff members were hired. The government also included telemedicine as one of the tools for contact with patients in rural regions. All these measures complementarily enhanced the state’s healthcare provisions.

Agriculture being one of the primary sectors in the income of Sikkim, the Tamang administration encouraged organic farming. The state government has also endeavored to disburse funds to farmers, spread awareness in utilizing ecological techniques and helping the farmers to develop productivity to meet the food security besides maintaining ecological balance.

Tamang has been a great champion in the fight for women’s rights. Through various polices he formulated and instituted, Tamang empowered women entrepreneurs and encouraged most of them through the policy of gender mainstreaming. 

The welfare programmes of the government also helped a lot in Tamang getting popular in the state. With the Aama Yojna Scheme initiated in April 2022, the state governments gave economic subsidies to unemployed mother and child. Bahini Scheme is another such example of women empowerment in which school girls are provided with free sanitary pads. Another important social welfare scheme that became popular was the Vatsalaya Scheme that provided financial assistance up to Rs. 3 lakh to Sikkimese couples without children, specifically catering to In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatments. IVF, a scientifically proven method for fertility has yet to be introduced on such a scale by any State in India, making Sikkim an exemplary in addressing the complex issue of infertility.

 

Sikkim is a land of wonderful natural beauty, and Tamang, as the Chief Minister, has been at the helm in environmental conservation. The government under him framed policies for environmentally safe practices, the reduction of plastic usage, and conservation of biodiversity within its rich verve. The focus on sustainable tourism and the conservation of natural resources added to the status of Sikkim as a green state.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought unusual circumstances, but leadership throughout the disaster by Tamang received a lot of appreciation. His government acted early and correctly regarding the virus’s containment and made adequate efforts in providing adequate healthcare facilities and vaccines. There were numerous awareness creation programs and good compliance with health measures that made it possible for the state to manage the pandemic with small case numbers and deaths.

In the 2024 state assembly elections, the SKM secured 31 out of 32 seats. This achievement marks the first time in Sikkim's history that a single party has won such a dominant share of the legislative seats.

Speaking exclusively to India Today NE, senior journalist and author Pem Wangchuk said that there are certain factors that has made the SKM party victorious. “While 2019 Sikkimese voters were still reluctant to try something new because people in Sikkim especially from the same community are very close, by the end of 2023 many Sikkimese people felt that they could safely vote for the SKM as the party that offers the best future for Sikkim as it was the AAP party became the deciding party in Delhi,” Wangchuk said.

SKM youth leader Yougan Tamang while speaking to India Today NE pointed out that it is the public trusts that made Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang and his party SIkkim Krantikari Morcha victorious for the second term in te 2024 state assembly elections. He said that issues such as Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF and COVID 19 pandemic were effectively handled and managed by the Sikkim government under the leadership of Prem Singh Tamang. The new districts created from the existing ones, the new women oriented policies formulated and introduced, regularization of temporary employees are among the achievement of the SKM party under Tamang administration.

Sikkim has witnessed extraordinary change under Prem Singh Tamang's leadership: moving right from development to education, healthcare and preservation of the environment. His policy of people-first and people centric schemes and initiative for the good of the state has widely recognized him as one of the most potent political leaders in Sikkim.