129th birth anniversary of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal celebrated in Sikkim
The period of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal from 1914 to 1963 was considered the golden age of the Namgyal dynasty until his death.
Sikkim celebrated the 129th birth anniversary of the 11th Chogyal (King) Sir Tashi Namgyal on 26 October. A low-key, rare celebration of the former king was organized by the Vivid Kala Akademi and the Journalists Association of Sikkim. The occasion was attended by people associated with the then royal family, as well as many people who had personally seen the former king in the monarchical era, along with students from various schools in Gangtok.
The era of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal from 1914 to 1963 is considered the golden age of the Namgyal dynasty. Which saw the welcome of the modern era along with the ancient confluence. Born in Tibet in 1893, when his father Thutob Namgyal, the 9th Chogyal, went into hiding after pressure from the then British Raj. Tashi Namgyal was educated at the prestigious St. Paul’s School in Darjeeling.
Speaking at the event, Yap Thinley Namgyal Denspa, a close associate of the then Chogyal family, shared, “The era of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal was the golden age of Sikkim. He was a saint king, I remember when he passed away, I was 13 (years old). I remember him very clearly as a stately man who barely spoke, but when he did speak, he was very honest, honest, and didn’t mince his words. The monarchy was divided into two periods, first we were the old educated, in the traditional Tibetan style until Sir Thutob Namgyal (9th king). So Thutob Namgyal had to face a lot of difficulties from the British Raj, especially Claude White. He (Thutob) had to flee to Tibet because Claude White had an inferiority complex. There was the Indian Civil Service which was now the British version of the Indian Administrative Service.
During the reign of Tashi Namgyal, he was known for his land reforms and free elections. He also supported closer ties between Sikkim, India and Tibet. Tashi Namgyal also founded the Namgyal Tibet Institute of Science with the foundation stone laid by the Dalai Lama in 1957. It was inaugurated on 1 October 1958 by the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Then it was called Sikkim Research Institute of Tibetology.
PW Rinzing, director of the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, shared, “So many reforms took place in the social, cultural, traditional, it all happened during his period. For example, in 1951, they abolished the earlier land occupation system, in 1951. It was a turning point in the history of Sikkim. We saw history change from there, democratic sentiments were given to the people. This was a change. He enlisted the judiciary in 1955, the same year he started the High Court of Sikkim. All these things are commendable. He was also the first to order a land survey in Sikkim in 1951, the records of that survey are still taken as the basis for all land reforms in Sikkim. There are many other reforms that he brought, including culture, religion, also politically because he was the Maharaja. In 1954 and 1961, he published the First and Second Five Year Plans in Sikkim. Taking the example from India, he wanted Sikkim to work in a planned manner. He led Sikkim to a new development, which we can see so far in Sikkim.
129th birth anniversary of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal celebrated in Sikkim
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News East India staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Also Read:- Permanent campus of NIT Sikkim to be ready by 2024 : Report 36 Oct 2021
[…] 129th birth anniversary of Chogyal Tashi Namgyal celebrated in Sikkim :… […]