Tourist vehicles entering Sikkim will now have to carry garbage bags

According to a new official order, tourist vehicles entering Sikkim will now have to carry large garbage bags. The order was issued by the Tourism Department.

All tourist vehicles entering Sikkim will now have to mandatorily carry a large garbage bag, according to an official order.

Tourists vehicles must carry large garbage bags

The decision has been taken to ensure community participation towards achieving the goal of environmental sustainability, said the order issued by the Tourism and Civil Aviation Department.

It will be the responsibility of the tour operators, travel agencies and vehicle drivers to inform the traveller about the use of garbage bags for waste disposal, it said.

Tourism Department says random checks will be conducted

Random checks of tourist vehicles would be conducted to ensure compliance, and any vehicle found violating the order will be penalised, it added.

Sikkim, which is India's least populated state with over 6 lakh residents, gets more than 20 lakh visitors every year for its picturesque Himalayan destinations, they said.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.