The challenge for the Mamata Banerjee government now is to insulate the Darjeeling brand from the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s disruptive tactics.The hills had been slowly returning to normal since the morning, withtourists who stayed back thronging the Mall and tour operators receiving enquiries on availability of hotel and car bookings. But in the evening, the Morcha called the indefinite agitation, creating a situation inimical to tourism, one of the mainstays of the hills.
“Although Morcha leaders have said that transport, hotels and shops will remain open, the agitations they announced might discourage tourists from visiting the hills, particularly in the aftermath of Thursday’s violence and yesterday’s strike. Also, banking facilities will be available only two days a week during the indefinite agitation. That is another deterrent,” a tour operator in Siliguri said.The protests have been called at a time the tourist season in the hills is coming to an end before the onset of the monsoon. The next season during and after the Pujas is three months away and because of the train booking cut-off period of four months, the waiting lists of NJP-bound trains is already very long. However, tourists are expected to wait and watch how the situation pans out before possible cancellations.The situation in the hills has been favourable for the tourism industry in the recent years – especially since 2013 – with the Morcha refraining from calling flash strikes and long shutdowns.
|
|
This is a short description in the author block about the author. You edit it by entering text in the "Biographical Info" field in the user admin panel.
0 comments:
Post a Comment