Rinchenpong

Near the town is the site of a historical battle between the forces of the then Chogyal (King) of Sikkim and the invading British forces. The Lepcha tribesmen used a concoction of unidentified herbs to poison the only water source, a lake (local term : pokhri). As a result, more than half of the British forces were killed, which stopped the British invasion and resulted in an accord. The lake remains poisoned even to this day and is known as bikh-pokhri locally (poisoned lake).