Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated Pakyong airport, about 30km from state capital Gangtok, bringing Sikkim on to the aviation map and liberating the tiny Himalayan state from its critical dependence on a sole highway for connectivity with the rest of the country. Landlocked Sikkim has no rail link . The nearest airport in West Bengal's Bagdogra is 125 km away. Commercial flights would begin from October 4 when SpiceJet would start its daily Kolkata-Sikkim flights. The project was built at a cost of cost of Rs 605.59 crore.
