Eyeing a record sixth consecutive term, chief minister and Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) chief Pawan Chamling has claimed his government is working towards a life expectancy of 100 years for the people of the tiny Himalayan state and earning a revenue of Rs 2,000 billion from hydel power alone.
Sikkim is supposed to hold assembly elections along with the Lok Sabha polls in April-May. Out of the 32 assembly seats, the ruling SDF has 29 while opposition party Sikkim Krantikari Morcha has two. The lone independent MLA is Chamling’s younger brother.
The former kingdom of the Chogyals that became a part of India in 1975 has a population of 0.61 million, according to the 2011 census, and the size of its budget for 2018-19 is Rs 70.51 billion.
“The life expectancy right now is 71 years, up from 60 years in 1994, when we came in power,” Chamling said on Sunday while kickstarting the campaign on the SDF’s foundation day with a 250-minute speech.
“In 25 years of our governance, the life expectancy has increased by 11 years. Our aim is to make sure every Sikkimese live at least 100 years,” he said.
Chamling also claimed the credit for “unparalleled success” his party has brought in Sikkim.
“Twenty-five years ago, our SDP was Rs 4.4 billion (Rs 440 crore) and today it is Rs 230 billion (Rs 23,000 cr). You can say that the development of Sikkim has increased by 5000%,” Chamling said.
“The visionary decision of my government to promote hydropower projects would annually fetch the state an annual revenue of Rs 2 lakh crore (Rs 2,000 billion),” he said.
Though the chief minister did not specify by which year this revenue would flow in from electricity or how much revenue Sikkim earns from electricity now, officials said the target would be achieved in 20 years.
“The revenue from power varies from time to time. We have to calculate,” power secretary of Sikkim KB Kunwar said.