Teesta’s USP Hill’s gain

Darjeeling, Jan 6: A month-long Rangeet-Teesta Tourism Carnival Festival is to be hosted by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC), starting from January 12, 2006.

The GNLF supremo, Subhash Ghising believes that the festival will help people to take advantage of the Teesta just as the residents of Varanasi benefited from the Ganga. The idea is to attract tourists to the hill-station using the Teesta as USP.

The confluence of the Teesta and Rangit – locally known as doban – is being prepared for the festival. It is 28 km away from Darjeeling.

The DGHC will organise the festival for five days while the local people intends to extend the celebration till the end of the month.

`It will be staged to highlight our tradition and culture. For this purpose we have invited a 15-member cultural troupe from Nepal to perform in the festival`, stated Bhanu Lama, a former councilor from Peshok, who is also the coordinator of the festival.

A cultural team from the DGHC`s information department and several troupes representing the various hill communities will also perform at the venue. The venue is planned to be developed as a tourist spot later with resorts and other infrastructure.
The construction of the podium has been completed and a makeshift market area where traditional food, liquor and handicrafts will be sold has also been set up.

The DGHC has planned to bring around 20 rafts to host a white river rafting competition, which is probably, the biggest attraction of the event. The GNLF supremo has announced that the chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, has also been invited for the festival.

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