Dreamland Gajoldoba

Dreamland Gajoldoba

Nidhu Bhusan Das

For my grandson Jishu Gajoldoba is a Heaven on the Earth. Ten Kms from Siliguri, 39.5 km from Bagdogra Airport and 19 km away from NJP Railway Junction station, Gajoldoba is a picturesque place and tourist attraction in the Dooars region of North Bengal which offers a variety of flora, fauna and physical features. It is in the West-South of the Himalayan foothills, sandwiched between Mahananda river to the west and Teesta river to the east. The reservoir caused by the Teesta Barrage adds to its mesmerizing beauty.

Those who like to rest awhile far from the madding crowd, Gajoldoba offers the right ambience. “Why Gajoldoba attracts you?” I asked Jishu. The answer was on his lip: “Birds, vast water, boating and photo opportunity.”

Many migratory birds from Ladakh and Central Asia like Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Bar-headed Goose, Greylag Goose, Lesser Whistling Duck, Ruddy Shelduck, Common Shelduck, Cotton Teal, Tufted Duck, Common Teal, Eurasian Wigeon, Spot-billed Duck, Mallard, Great Cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Little Cormorant, Indian Pond Heron, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Northern Lapwing, River Lapwing, Grey-headed Lapwing, Little Ringed Plover fly here seasonally and swim on the vast expanse of the barrage water.

Gajoldoba barrage is the most attractive place to visit. Constructed over the Teesta river, this barrage offers a beautiful view of Mount Kanchenjunga to the visitors. This place is surrounded by dense Baikunthapur Forest. It offers an ideal retreat for those who have the mind to spend some quality time on the lap of a calm nature. Gajoldoba is a wonderful place for bird watchers.

A mega project “BhorerAlo “is growing up here on 200 acres. The resort now offers tourists a splendid experience amidst the lush green landscape. The mighty snow-clad Kanchenjunga is really alluring. It is a unique government accommodation in the Dooars region.

                        Bhorer Alo

Bhorer Alo Tourism Property is run and maintained by West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Ltd (WBTDCL). Presently Bhorer Alo operates with 24 cottages (both two-storey and single-storey). Beside Bhorer Alo flows River Teesta and Mt. Kanchenjunga throws a purple shadow on it.

Room Types and Tariffs:
AC Cottages: 2900/-

Deluxe Cottages – Suit (Chalet B): 3600/-
Duplex Cottages – 01st floor: 3200/-
Duplex Cottages – Ground Floor: 3200/-
Lake Side Cottages (Chalet C) – 550 meter from reception: 2500/-
GST @ 12% on the above room tariff, payable at spot.
10 % Discount (Senior Citizen, Cancer Patient, Single Occupancy) will be applicable on Weekdays (Mon-Thurs).
No discounts on Weekends (Fri-Sun) and Govt. Holidays.
Charge for extra person @ 20% on the room tariff, payable on the spot.
Extra Cot charges @ 30% on the room tariff, payable at spot.

Tourists from outside North Bengal can land in Bagdogra Airport, NJP Railway Junction station and therefrom reach Gajoldoba by car on hire. 

Gajoldoba is a place of beauty throughout the year. However, winter is considered the best season to visit. Migratory birds are winged beauty on the barrage water from November to March.

 

The Golden Fort Faces Threats

        The Golden Fort of 
             Jaisalmer 

           Faces Threats 

                                                       Nidhu Bhusan Das

            Jaisalmer Fort, also known as Sonar Quila or Golden Fort, now is a World Heritage Site.It is in the city of Jaisalmer,Rahasthan.Rajput  ruler Rawal Jaisal built the Fort in 1156 A.D.The world Heritage Committee declared it a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the group of Hill Forts of rajasthan. The fort stands amidst the sandy expanse of the great Thar Desert on Trikut Hell.It has been the scene of many battles.  Its massive yellow sandstone walls have a tawny lion colour during the day, fading to honey-gold as the sun sets, thereby camouflaging the fort in the yellow desert. For this reason, it is also known as the Sonar Quila or Golden Fort.  This is one of the largest fortifications in the world.

Jaisalmer Fort Pix: Indrani Kundu

Jaisal conspired with the Sultan of Gaur to dispose his nephew Bhojdev from his territory. The other important event of the fort was during 1276 when King Jetsi strengthened the fort against the invading Sultan of Delhi. the 56 bastions were manned by 3,700 soldiers. After eight years of invasion, the Sultan's army destroyed the castle. Bhatis took control of the fort, but had no means to strengthen it. In 1306, Dodoo was elected the Rawal for his bravery for ejecting the Rathors. He subsequently started building the fort. The Rawals could not stand the invasion of Mughal emperor Babur and subsequently ceded to Akbar in 1570 and also got his daughter married to him.

          The fort contains 3 layers of walls. The outer or the lower layer is made out of solid stone blocks and it reinforces the loose rubble of Trikuta Hill. The second, or middle, wall snakes around the fort. From the innermost, or third, wall, the Rajput warriors once hurled boiling oil and water as well as massive blocks of rock at their enemies, who would become entrapped between the second and third walls. This defences of the fort include 99 bastions, of which 92 were built between the period of 1633-47.

Ala-ud-din Khilji attacked and captured the fort in the 13th century and managed to hold it for 9 years. During the siege of the fort the Rajput women committed Jauhar. The second battle at the fort took place in 1541, when Mughal emperor Humayun attacked the fort city.

The fort was under the control of Mughals until 1762 when Maharawal Mulraj took control of the fort. Due to its isolated location, the fort escaped the ravages of the Marathas. The treaty between the British East India Company and Mulraj in 12 December 1818 allowed the king to have succession of the fort and provided protection from invasion. After the death of Mulraj in 1820, his grandson Gaj Singh took reigns of the fort.

With the advent of British Rule, the emergence of maritime trade and the growth of the port of Bombay led to the gradual economic decline of Jaisalmer. However,the continued strategic importance of Jaisalmer was demonstrated during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars.

           The Jaisalmer Fort today faces manifold threats that are a result of the increasing population pressure on it. Water seepage, inadequate civic amenities, derelict houses and seismic activity around the Teikuta Hill are some of the major concerns impacting the Fort. Unlike most other forts, the Jaisalmer Fort has been built over a weak sedimentary rock foothill which makes its foundations especially vulnerable to seepage. Over the years this has led to the collapse of significant portions of the Fort such as the Queen’s Palace or Rani Ka Mahal and parts of the outer boundary wall and the lower pitching walls.

         A major restoration work has been undertaken by the World Monuments Fund and UK based charity Jaisalmer in Jeopardy. 

Abode of One Horned Rhino

     Abode of One Horned Rhino

                   Nidhu Bhusan Das

 

                    Jaldapara National Park (formerly Wild Life Sanctuary ) in Alipurduar District of West Bengal, India is famous for her One Horned Asiatic Rhinos. It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1941 with the aim of protecting the Indian one-horned rhinoceros. In May 2012, its status was upgraded to that of a national park.

           Located in the flood plains of Torsa, the Green Cover rich with a huge marsh and grassland. 

           If you are, really, fond of variety in wild life you cannot but desire to spend a couple of nights in the Holong Bungalow enjoy the free movement of herbivores and carnivores, and their pranks and joy day and night in the Green Wild. It is gifted with a variety of woods.grasslands,flowing streams,sandy river banks and tall grass covered area. The forest is mainly savannah covered with tall elephant grasses. 

            The sanctuary holds the highest rhino population in India after Kaziranga National Park in Assam.Besides the Rhinoceros, you can see the famous Royal Bengal Tiger, Gaur, Leopard, Sambar, Chital, Hog Deer, Barking Deer, and lot others.

                                                             

Elephant in Jaldapara.Pix by Partha Pratim Saha

           Jaldapara is a paradise for bird watchers. It is one of the very few places in India, where the Bengal florican (Houbaropsis bengalensis also called the Bengal Bustard) is sighted. The other birds to be found here are the crested eagle, Pallas's fishing eagle and shikra, besides jungle fowl, peafowl, partridges, and lesser pied hornbill. Python, monitor lizards, krates, cobras, geckos and about 8 species of fresh water turtles have also found sanctuary here.

           Bagdogra is the nearest Airport at a distance of 140kms.You can travel by road to the idyllic Jaldapara to be in the midst of pristine Nature. Madarihat is the entry point for the sanctuary. It's located on the NH 31 (Siliguri-Hasimara), 140km east from Siliguri, 80km north from Cooch Behar and 50km west from Alipurduar.

The nearest railway station is Madarihat which is only 7km from the sanctuary. All passenger trains stop here. Jaldapara Tourist Lodge is a walkable distance from this railway station.All the mail and express trains stop at Birpara/Hasimara railway stations; both are 20km away from the sanctuary.

Peafowl at Jaldapara. Pix by Partha Pratim Saha

         Jaldapara is connected by road with Siliguri and other places in North Bengal. North Bengal State Transport Corporation buses, Bhutan Government buses, inibuses are available from Siliguri to Alipurduar via Madarihat.

          The sight and sound of the wild will make you feel being in harmony with glory of the Savage far from the madding crowd.

An elephant safari is preferred by most people staying at Jaldapara (in Holong lodge or tourism lodge) overnight. The 4x4 safari is available both in the morning and in the afternoon.

         The climate is warm and humid all the year long. The best season to visit is the middle of October to the end of February. Summer temperatures ranges from 22-35 degrees C while winter temperature ranges from 6-19 degrees C.Monsoon starts as early as mid May & continues up to late September. This region experiences heavy to very heavy rainfall during June-August.

      

           

             

             

Mahanada : A polluted River

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  


Mahananda at Porajhar in Siliguri
Pix:Papun  Bhattacharyya                                                                                                      

Mahananda:A 


Polluted River

     

Nidhu Bhusan Das                                                              

          Mahananda, the daughter of Darjeeling Himalayas is under threat.Human settlements, cattle sheds on the river bed, human and cattle excrements, remains of funeral pyres, carcasses, sewage of towns are serious threat to the rainfed river. One expert in a recent seminar organized by Save Mahananda Committee at Siliguri presented alarming

data about the presence of contaminants in the Mahananda along the stretch in Siliguri sub-division.He said two-thirds of the water along the stretch are liquid pollutants. A large amount  of the sewage of the burgeoning Siliguri Corporation is emptied into the river which bifurcates the town and is it’s main source of water. If immediate steps are not taken to bring back the health of the river, he said, people of Siliguri and contiguous area will be amenable to different serious water borne diseases.

Mahananda has her origin in Chimli,Kurseong. She in her course of descent from the hills runs through a subterranean area and comes into sight after a journey of four miles. She alters her route at Siliguri and enters adjacent Jalpaiguri district.She has a catchment area of more than 25,000 sq km.She has three tributaries-Trinai, Ranochondi and the Chokor-Dauk pair. In her downhill course Balasun also joined the Mahananda system.The river gains international status entering Bangladesh. She flows through North Bengal, Bihar and Bangladesh,re-enters India at Malda and turns again to Bangladesh to join the Ganges which is rechristened as Padma. Siliguri and Malda are two important urban settlements on the bank of the river.

The river in its Siliguri stretch remains a lean channel with little water flowing most of the year except during the monsoon.The bed has risen over the years with tons of boulders and pebbles rushing downhill with rain water and depositing along the stretch.The rate of siltation has increased with two more bridges built on the river between Airview More and Naukaghat,two points within a crow’s flight.

Endangered Bird Spotted in Siliguri

Endangered Bird Spotted in Siliguri

                                                      Nidhu Bhusan Das

                                           GREATER COUCAL SIGHTED AT SILIGURI

With the high speed urbanization in place, Siliguri, the gateway to the North-east, has already lost many of its birds along with the loss of vegetation. Greater Coucal or Crow Pheasant (Centropus Sinensis) is an endangered species, rarely seen in the sprawling town. The species is usually found from jungle to cultivation and urban gardens. Recently Souradipto Banerjee, an n undergraduate student and amateur Nature photographer, has spotted a pair of Greater Coucal in the bushes adjacent to a house in the town and photographed them. Local people are                                                                           

 unanimous in their opinion that this bird, once seen aplenty, are now rarely found in the town.

The birds are large, like a crow with a long tail and coppery brown wings. The eyes are ruby red. They are weak fliers. They are often seen clambering about in vegetation or walking on the ground. They forage for insects, eggs and nestlings of other birds. They have a familiar deep resonant call.

Waterfalls of Jowai

Waterfalls of Jowai

    Nidhu Bhusan Das

Picturesque Meghalaya(home to clouds) in Eastern Himalaya is resplendent with waterfalls. Of the 16 falls three are in the Jowai-Amlarem region. They are: Krang Suri, Tyrshi  and Thlumuwi.Their regaling sound adds to the charm of  the area.

Krang Suri : This is a charming cascade in Amlarem Civil Sub Division of Jaintia Hills District. This fall is

Krang Suri

a tourist attraction. It is made accessible to the tourists. The roads are  paved with multi-colored local stones, arranged symmetrically and aesthetically.

Tyrshi

Tyrshi :  Jowai boasts of the Fall on the Shillong-Jowai Road( NH 44) as does Shillong of her Elephant Fall. Tyrshi looks like a cascade of milk. It is about 5 kms from Jowai.

Thlumuwi :  This enchanting fall is  on the Jowai-Amlarem Road. It is an enchanting site for the visitors.

Thlumuwi

                                                             

Buxa Fort : History in Ruins

                          Nidhu  Bhusan Das

      Buxa Fort, now in ruins, in the picturesque setting of Duars, North      Bengal, India is an attraction for tourists interested in the study of archaeological remains. It is obscure when and who built the fort, 867 meters above sea level, but what history confirms is that it had been a bone of contention between the Bhutan king and Koch kings before it was occupied by the British. Invited by the Koch king, the British took over the fort for the king who transferred it  to the British  on November 11,1865 by way of the Treaty of Sinchula.The British replaced the  the bamboo-wood structure of the fort by stone structure which is now in ruins. During the freedom struggle of India, the fort was used by the British as a high security prison and detention camp in 1930s, and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose is believed to be in detention in   prison for a brief period.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                              
      A few hundred  Tibetan monks who crossed over to India  pursued by the Chinese troops following the  uprising in Tibet in 1959 took shelter in the fort and turned it into a  monastic study centre and refugee camp. They vacated the fort  on the advice of the Dalai Lama in 1971.

    The fort needs be protected from possible encroachments.