Tourism fest for central Dooars

A house of the Toto tribe in central Dooars. File picture

TT, Alipurduar, Sept. 13: A tourism promotion group will hold a festival in the forests of central Dooars in November to enable visitors to know the culture of different tribes while seeing the biodiversity of the region.

The festival, to be organised by the Association for Conservation and Tourism, is scheduled to start in Jaldapara. It will also cover Chilapata forest and Buxa Tiger Reserve. Tourists can avail themselves of a 20 per cent discount on packages if they visit central Dooars in November.

A source said the festival would start in Jaldapara, where it would be held on November 14 and 15. In Chilapata, the fest will be on November 16 and 17 and in the Buxa Tiger Reserve, it is scheduled for November 18 and 19.

Raj Basu, the convener of the ACT, said: “Usually, tourism in central Dooars means seeing the forest and wildlife. But there are people of 150 tribes in Central Dooars who live between the Dyna and Sankosh rivers. Toto, Rava, Mech, Nepali, Rajbangshi, Dukpa and Santal are among the tribes.”

“Tourists would be taken for trekking and watching cultural programs by different communities at the event. They can also get a first-hand experience of their food, traditional attire as well as the cultural heritage,” he added.

Basu said the fest would be the first of its kind in the region. “We want to send a message to the tourists throughout the world that besides the nature, central Dooars has a rich cultural diversity also,” he said.

Tourists can also enjoy bike riding on the river bed, trekking and rock climbing, and visit orange orchards during the festival. Basu also said the tour agents were trying to develop new destinations in the region. He said tour operators and tourism writers from across the world were expected to attend the festival.