Tourists enjoy a peaceful election day in the Hills
Darjeeling: As the sun rose over the polling day in Darjeeling, Pradip Mistry, a tourist from Kolkata was in two minds, whether to venture out or not. With poll day pictures of clashes seen on television and in his neighbourhood etched in his mind, Mistry did not want to take any chance.
However, with the spirit of adventure having got the better of him, Pradip finally mustered the courage to step out to discover poll day was more of a holiday in Darjeeling, painting a completely different scene than in the plains. “Early in the morning, I stepped out with plans of a morning walk. I wanted to finish my walk by 7 am and return. I did not want to take any chances. However, after walking 2 km, I realised that there was nothing to worry about. There was no semblance of a polling day. The locals assured me that it would go peacefully and so it was. I wish the whole country would follow in the footsteps of Darjeeling,” stated Pradip Mistry.
“We have always had peaceful polls in the Hills. Most of the shops are closed on the day with hardly any vehicles. It is more of a holiday when friends and relatives get together, chat and have a good time after casting their votes,” stated Subash Tamang, a local resident. Tourists made the best use of the day.
“Traffic is bad in Darjeeling. The day I had arrived, it took me nearly an hour to cover a distance of 3 km to enter town. Today is just the opposite. With hardly any traffic, we have the town to ourselves. We spent the whole day walking around. The best way to enjoy a hill station is on foot,” stated Ravi Sharma, a tourist from Delhi. “We have lots of tourists this time. Polls have had no effect at all as everything is peaceful,” stated Anup Chhetri, a hotelier.
Mall, the most popular public promenade of Darjeeling, saw a huge rush of tourists and local residents alike on Friday as they spent the day lazing in the sun.
The tourism industry is expecting a bigger rush in the day to come. “The plains are on fire. With polls over in North Bengal, except for Malda, we are expecting a rush,” stated Raj Basu, chairman, Himalayan Hospitality and Tourism Development Network.
