Cyclonic storm takes sheen off tourist spots

Kolkata: Three tourist spots in South 24-Parganas have been devastated by cyclonic storm Bulbul, which hit the district on Saturday evening.

These three spots — Mousuni Island, Henry's Island and Jharkhali — have emerged as Bengal's major tourist destinations since the past few years.

The bungalow of the State Fisheries Development Corporation (SFDC) at the Henry's Island has been badly destroyed by Bulbul.

The store room has been raised to the ground and roof of the bungalow has been blown off. SFDC has cancelled all the bookings in the next five months. A senior SFDC official said the extent of damage of the bungalow has not been calculated yet.

It will take several months to clear the felled trees, which blocked the approach road.

Almost all electric poles have been uprooted and there is no electricity at the moment.

Electricity is likely to be restored within a week to 10 days. "Business during the peach season, which starts from October and continues till March, will be badly hit," he said.

Mousuni Island situated at the confluence of Bay of Bengal and the river Ganga is famous for sand, sun, sea and virgin beaches. It takes around one and a half hours to reach the island from Namkhana.

The island came up as the most popular tourist spot in South 24-Parganas.

Tourists stayed in tents in the middle of nature. Professional photographers visited the area to take the snaps of sunrise and various species of birds. The island has been completely destroyed and the officials of South 24-Parganas could not specify when it would be ready for use.

The bungalow at Jharkhali has also been badly damaged. The cyclone Bulbul has hit the area between Sagar Island and Khepupara in Bangladesh with wind speed varying anything between 120km per hour. Hundreds of trees have been uprooted in Jharkhali.

Senior officials of South 24-Parganas said the total damage has not yet been ascertained.

Thousands of mud houses have been either fully or partially damaged. The disaster management teams could not reach many areas because many roads have been blocked by felled trees. Drinking water has become scarce in some areas. Restoration work will start after a week, he said.