PM Modi, while attending an event marking 50 years of Sikkim’s statehood, praised it for its cleanliness. "One of the best things I noticed throughout the entire journey...was the cleanliness of Sikkim's roads," he said. "No filth anywhere, far and wide...cleanliness in air too...cleanliness on the roads too," he added. He called Sikkim "heaven of East and garden of orchids".