Kalimpong: Sikkim government has built a smart Multi-Level Car Parking facility accommodating 409 cars that can withstand earthquake of upto 7.0 magnitude on the Richter scale.
The initiative is aimed at addressing the parking woes and curbing traffic snarls on the arterial roads of Gangtok. The hydraulic parking lot is a step toward building a smart city.
Sikkim is primarily dependent on tourism and every day thousands of foreign tourists arrive in the hilly state thanks to its weather conditions. But traffic congestion has been hitting Gangtok due to the rush of tourists. The Sikkim government has come up with a solution to this problem.
The multi-level hydraulic parking lot is constructed on a 3.75 lakh square feet area along Mahatma Gandhi Marg in Gangtok. This is the first such a multi-storied structure built on a Himalayan mountain peak using cutting-edge technology.
Researchers from IIT Guwahati and Jadavpur University have collaborated in the implementation of the project. The parking lot has been constructed using pre-fabricated technology mainly by using steel. Through this technology, the high-rise structures will remain intact even if the earthquake is of 7.0 Richter Scale magnitude.
The Sikkim government has given a private company the task of managing the parking lot under PPP initiative on lease of Rs 196 crore for 26 years. As many as 409 cars can be parked in this facility. Besides, there will be a five-star shopping mall on the first floor of the parking lot. For the entertainment of drivers, there will be an indoor sports area and canteen.
Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang inaugurated the parking and multi-storey on Sunday. Chief Secretary VB Pathak and many ministers were present during the inauguration.
The Chief Minister announced a Sikkim Car Drivers Welfare Board for the drivers of the state. Rs 1 crore has been allocated for the board and Tamang announced a life insurance of Rs 10 lakh per year for around 400 drivers.
"Smart parking is the first step towards transforming Sikkim into a smart city. Sikkim will be the most convenient place for tourists. In Gangtok, cars had to be parked on the streets and there was a dearth of parking lots that led to traffic congestion. The new state-of-the-art parking lot will save all problems. Drivers will also be spared of harassment," Tamang said.
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