Sikkim tourism stakeholders oppose IMF proposal to be single-window authority on mountaineering permits

BIJOY GURUNG

Associations warn of monopoly, seek State control over expeditions

GANGTOK,: Tourism and mountaineering stakeholders of Sikkim have voiced strong opposition to the Indian Mountaineering Foundation’s (IMF) proposal to assume exclusive control over the approval, regulation and coordination of all mountaineering expeditions in the Himalayan State.

In a joint memorandum addressed to the State chief secretary, the tourism stakeholders recorded their serious concerns over the IMF’s written request to the Sikkim government that all mountaineering expeditions to scale peaks in Sikkim to be channelized through the foundation for marketing and collecting revenue on behalf of the government.

“We, the representatives of various Sikkim tourism stakeholders strongly oppose this request of the IMF to be the sole conduit for obtaining permits and them collecting revenue from us stakeholders,” said the stakeholders in their representation.

The memorandum was signed by Travel Agents Association, Sikkim Association of Adventure Tour Operators, All Sikkim Travel & Hospitality Association, Sikkim United Tourism Organisation, and Sikkim Mountaineering Association. The associations noted that the IMF proposal has raised “serious concerns and resentment” among the local Sikkimese tourism stakeholders and professionals.

We humbly request your good office to withhold the current proposal for designating IMF as the single window authority, the associations submitted to the chief secretary.

It is learnt that the IMF had on November 15, 2025, written to the State government seeking a close collaboration for promotion of adventure tourism in Sikkim.

The IMF highlighted its global reach and affiliations with alpine clubs worldwide, and ability to expedite the requisite clearances for expeditions from Central authorities.

In its letter, the IMF requested the Sikkim government to “recognize the Indian Mountaineering Foundation as the single-window authority for clearance, regulation, and coordination of all mountaineering expeditions – Indian and foreign – within the State, as it is the practice in other Himalayan States”.

Presently, five alpine peaks in Sikkim are open for mountaineering.

The local stakeholders, however, maintained that IMF, being a private organisation should not be given such an important role and responsibility of controlling all the local adventure tourism stakeholders. This will set a dangerous trend of a monopolistic practice controlled by a few people from a private organisation, it was submitted.

It was explained that the IMF proposal may have been reasonable about a few decades back but not in present age when Sikkim is self-sufficient in terms of local manpower and technical resources for mountaineering.

The association cautioned that the IMF proposal, if approved, will hamper the livelihood of trained local guides and mountaineering manpower while also undermining local sentiments, particularly the deep cultural and spiritual relationship that Sikkim’s indigenous communities share with mountains and natural environment.

It will also reduce business opportunities for local tour operators, trekking agencies, and associated service providers, thereby subsidizing or sidelining the interest of Sikkim’s tourism stakeholders, the associations said.

The associations also recorded its belief that “any policy related to mountaineering and adventure tourism in Sikkim must prioritize local empowerment, preserve local rights, and protect the economic ecosystem that has been developed over decades and that all powers and permission to climb mountain peaks must lie with our democratically elected State government.”