Darjeeling tourist inflow steady in spite of winter

Darjeeling, lovingly called ‘the Queen of hill station’ never ceases to beckon those who are enamoured of the Himalayas with its celestial charm. Its beauty changes in tune with the changes in the seasons. Darjeeling in the winter has a special fascination for those who can brave the icy cold climate there. The number of the tourists who can enjoy nature while grappling with the bitter cold is, of course, not much. Yet, the tourist-flow never stops fully.
Winter in the hills now literally bites with the mercury dropping down almost near freezing point with the approach of the night. The temperature is said to be hovering somewhere between two degree centigrade and five degree centigrade during the nocturnal hours. The cold wind getting, as it were, into the skin and an impenetrable fog reducing everything to invisibility are now keeping this hill station in their thralldom with a feeble sun only occasionally peeping out from behind the penumbra of a somber greyness.
At present there is a lull in the number of the tourists coming to Darjeeling. However, according to Mr Gopal Lama, the deputy director, department of tourism, government of West Bengal, this lull is short-lived. ‘With the approach of the Christmas the Darjeeling hills are getting ready to assume a colourful look. For the coming 10 days Darjeeling will be brimming with a large number of tourists who will especially come from different parts of West Bengal to spend the Christmas amidst the grey whiteness of the Himalayas which has a queer attraction of its own. The foreigners have already arrived there in large numbers. Most of the hotels are now booked for the coming festive season'.
The political scenario in the hills is far from being a congenial one from the point of view of the tourism-prospects. Over the issue of the Sixth Schedule, political tension and bickering are now on the cards. Possibilities of indefinite bandhs cannot be ruled out. There is a definite smell of an impending restlessness and violence in the air of the misty hills. Yet, Darjeeling can never be wholly void of its peculiar charm and no amount of political malevolence can rob it of its transcendental fascination.

Courtesy: The Statesman

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