Gelephu – South-central gateway to Bhutan

Located in south-central part of the country, bordering Indian town Dadhgiri in state of Assam, the small border town of Gelephu comes under Sarpang district of Bhutan (located about 30 km from district headquarter in Sarpang). This little charming town is one of the road entry / exit points into Bhutan. Phuntsholing to its west and Samdrup Jongkhar to its east are two other road entry points into Bhutan, from India.

Also used to be called as Hatisar (meaning elephants residing in the area) in olden days, Gelephu experiences sub-tropical climatic conditions having warm & dry winter and wet & hot summer. The minimum rainfall in the region ranges from 1500-3500 mm per annum and the temperature varies from 16-30 degree. The people of Gelephu mainly depend upon farming, rearing of livestock for their livelihood, with main staple food crop being rice followed by maize and cultivation of millet while the cash crops are areca nut and ginger.

The prominent tourist destinations of Punakha & Wangduephodrang in Bhutan are about 190k form Gelephu (about 7-hour drive) while the town is situated 240km from major Indian city Guwahati (Assam).

(Image credit: Gelephu Thromde)