Hills gear up for tea & tourism fest

VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, Darjeeling, Dec. 20. The third edition of the Darjeeling Tea and Tourism Festival will be held here from December 24 to January 1 and the organisers have decided to make ' diverse culture of the hills' the main theme of the event.

Lt. Col ( retd) Ramesh Allay, the deputy chief executive of the GTA, said: " The festival is being organised jointly by the GTA, the state government and the people of Darjeeling.

Krishendu Chowdhury, the state's tourism minister will also attend the festival on December 27." This year, the organisers have decided to concentrate on cultural events instead of bringing in celebrities from Bollywood as was being done in the past two editions.

Singers and musicians from the 60s and 70s will also be felicitated on December 27.

A food festival, flower shows and body building competitions are also being organised during the week long festival.

" All the communities residing in the hills will be showcasing their rich and diverse culture during the entire festival period. We, will, however, also have star Nepal singers like Kunti Moktan and Sabin Rai from Nepal for the event," said Suden Tshering Bhutia, the executive director, information and cultural affairs department, GTA. The organisers are putting in special effort to highlight the Darjeeling tea during the festival.

" We are trying to put up a set- up so that tourists are shown how tea is processed in the tea garden factories. We will also be felicitating tea garden workers during the event," said Topen Lama, executive director of the GTA. The organisers have decided to cater to the needs of the tourists and have worked out a special discount package for them.

The tourist flow during the last tourism season was very less because of the hill agitation.

" We will be providing a discount of 10 percent on paragliding and the ride on the ropeway will also be cheaper by 15 percent during the festival period," said Sonam Bhutia, executive director, GTA tourism department.

The organisers have decided to dedicate December 27 to Agam Singh Giri, a well know Nepali poet from Darjeeling.

" Since December 27 is the birth anniversary of the poet, we will dedicate the day to Agam Singh Giri. Songs of Giri will be performed on that day by well known singers from the hills," said Suden.