Banjhakri Falls and Energy Park

The Banjhakri Falls and Energy Park lies in thick forest at Swastik, about 7 km from Gangtok on National Highway 31 towards North Sikkim. At its heart is a natural waterfall about 30 m high, fed by springs higher up. The park takes its name from the Ban Jhakri, the traditional shamanic healer ('ban' means forest, 'jhakri' healer) whose worship is directed at spirits of the caves around the falls. Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling conceived it after visiting the falls in 2004, hoping to revive interest in these beliefs, and two acres of forest were developed for it.

Paved paths and footbridges wind through gardens planted with camellia, hydrangea, poinsettia and other ornamentals. Statues of jhakris and of figures such as Mangpa, Bongthing and Phedangba stand in thatched enclosures, and there are gazebos and an artificial lake with a dragon at its centre. A museum hall run by the Sikkim Rural Energy Development Agency covers renewable energy, and solar lamps light the grounds.