Gorkhaland unrest hits tourism in Darjeeling

Kolkata: West Bengal's tourism industry has been hit badly by the flare-up in the Darjeeling Hills over the demand for a separate Gorkhaland state.

More than 100 hotels are vacant as tourists are leaving the pretty mountain resort in the wake of the violence.

The verdant hills and the Himalayan toy train service are a prime tourist attraction, particularly during the summer.

"The loss due to the ongoing agitation in Darjeeling district is huge and everyday it's accumulating," according to West Bengal Tourism Minister Manab Mukherjee.

He said directly and indirectly thousands of people are being affected by the Gorkhaland protest in northern West Bengal.

The exact losses in the tourism industry of Darjeeling hills and the Dooars area would be assessed later, Mukherjee added.

Tourism in Darjeeling is roughly a five-billion rupee industry and the economy of the district depends entirely on tourism, tea and timber. These three sectors have been badly affected due to the indefinite shutdown caused by the Gorkhaland agitation.

Thousands of tourists, including foreigners, had a harrowing time as transport kept off the roads and food became scarce due to the indefinite shutdown called by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) supporters in the hills.

Volatile situation

An exodus of an estimated 40,000 tourists started as the indefinite shutdown began in Darjeeling last week.

"The situation is very volatile. We are cancelling tourists' bookings in Darjeeling and other parts of northern Bengal," Travel Agent Federation of India (eastern India) Chairman Anil Punjabi said.

Many tourists were also stranded in Sikkim as the National Highway linking the state with Siliguri railhead remained cut off because of a blockade by the Gorkhaland supporters.