Mangan is known as the Cardamom Capital of the world. The climate and terrain best suit the growing of the larger variety of Cardamom here. In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named North Sikkim one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). It is the only district in Sikkim currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).