'Jhargram sees record footfall of tourists during Durga Puja'

KOLKATA: Jhargram, which is coming up as a major tourism centre, recorded high footfall during the Puja and afterwards, said experts.

Till December 2022, most of the accommodations have been booked. There are more than 75 establishments, including government accommodations, private hotels and resorts and homestays.

As the state government is providing Rs 1.50 lakh to the homestays following an initiative taken up by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, more and more homestays have been openned up.

As many tourists are interested to see the stars when the sky is clear, Sunil Agarwala, District Magistrate of Jhargram, inaugurated a telescope at Chetana Homestay in September.

The income of the folk artisans and folk artistes have gone up by several times dues to the rise in the flow of tourists.

Various items made of burnt clay and sabai, a kind of grass, are in high demand. There is a centre and a museum from where home decoration items and other things, made of sabai, are sold. The stone craft of two villages, namely, Simulpal and Dhangikusum in Belpahari area are in demand, along with various items made by the slate artisans and decorative pieces made of bamboo and wood.

Sumit Dutta, who brought Jhargram in the tourist map of the country, a member of the Indian Association of Tour Operators, said: "The folk artistes have been benefited immensely. Cultural programmes are regularly held and the tourists are taken to the villages to see the programmes of the folk artistes."

He said earlier Jhargram was a weekend destination, but now people are coming to stay there for three to four days. He said because of the inflow of tourists, there was an increase in demand for guides.

The places visited by the tourists include Jhargram Rajbari, Jhargram Raj kachari bari, Chilkigarh Rajbari in Jambuni, Kanakdurga temple in Jambuni, Jhargram forest, Dhangikusum Falls, bird sanctuary at Jhilli, Gopiballavpur, Eco Park at Gopiballavpur, Tribal Cultural Museum and mini zoo, among others.

Babulal Mahato, SDO Sadar, said the tourists had developed special taste for local food and more and more shops selling local cuisines were coming up.

"Tourism in near future is going to become a major industry in Jhargram with big hoteliers showing interest to open their establishments here," he said.

During the Left Front regime, tourists had stopped going to Jhargram because of the Maoist activities and insurgencies.

After coming to power in 2011, Mamata Banerjee started visiting the area to win the confidence of people. She took several steps to boost tourism and encourage folk artisans and artistes.