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The mail always gets here on time, come rain or snow. And before you start thinking it’s the most efficient mailman in the world, it’s actually the world’s highest cyber café---functioning at 13,600 feet above sea level at the Sherathang Trade Mart near Nathula.
The community information centre cum cyber café appears in the Limca Book of World Records as the highest permanent cyber café. The place is currently under more than 10 feet of snow—enough to almost completely cover up the cyber café—and it gets a good spell of rain every now and then. But that hasn’t stopped the mail from coming, which is good, considering that the cyber café is an important means of staying connected to the rest of civilization.
It caters to tourists, army personnel, porters and GREF personnel all year round. “In the winters too, when border trade closes, we keep the café open for the army, GREF and employees of the market’s administrative block. Local children are newest customers and it keeps them occupied during the winter break. You could even call it a hang out place,” says Rinzing Wongyal Sherpa, who runs the café.
Funded by the Centre, the cyber café is run by the Information and Technology Department of the Sikkim government.
Sherpa who lives a little far off Yakla, says the trip to the cyber café everyday is a bit of a bother, especially in the freezing cold. “ I have to walk for nearly an hour. The road is treacherous with small avalanches every now and then,” he says. But he wouldn’t dream of closing for the winter, even if he just gets two or three customers most days. Sharp at 10.30 a.m., he open his little café and closes early at 1.30p.m. “The café doubles up as a photo studio and photo-copier centre,” he says.
The charges are quite nominal, considering the hardships owing to the topography, remoteness and weather. Internet surfing charges are Rs20 a hour, eight copies of passport size photographs cost Rs60 and photocopying charges as Rs5.
The connection does go at times, but nothing a few days of work can’t fix. Electricity is also a problem Sherpa manages with a generator and solar power.
Source: Hindustan Times
Collected By: Saurav Chakraborty
The community information centre cum cyber café appears in the Limca Book of World Records as the highest permanent cyber café. The place is currently under more than 10 feet of snow—enough to almost completely cover up the cyber café—and it gets a good spell of rain every now and then. But that hasn’t stopped the mail from coming, which is good, considering that the cyber café is an important means of staying connected to the rest of civilization.
It caters to tourists, army personnel, porters and GREF personnel all year round. “In the winters too, when border trade closes, we keep the café open for the army, GREF and employees of the market’s administrative block. Local children are newest customers and it keeps them occupied during the winter break. You could even call it a hang out place,” says Rinzing Wongyal Sherpa, who runs the café.
Funded by the Centre, the cyber café is run by the Information and Technology Department of the Sikkim government.
Sherpa who lives a little far off Yakla, says the trip to the cyber café everyday is a bit of a bother, especially in the freezing cold. “ I have to walk for nearly an hour. The road is treacherous with small avalanches every now and then,” he says. But he wouldn’t dream of closing for the winter, even if he just gets two or three customers most days. Sharp at 10.30 a.m., he open his little café and closes early at 1.30p.m. “The café doubles up as a photo studio and photo-copier centre,” he says.
The charges are quite nominal, considering the hardships owing to the topography, remoteness and weather. Internet surfing charges are Rs20 a hour, eight copies of passport size photographs cost Rs60 and photocopying charges as Rs5.
The connection does go at times, but nothing a few days of work can’t fix. Electricity is also a problem Sherpa manages with a generator and solar power.
Source: Hindustan Times
Collected By: Saurav Chakraborty
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