Tourism organisations from India and Nepal have signed a memorandum of understanding in Madarihat, Alipurduar, to promote cross-border travel, improve grassroots tourism services and develop circuits linking destinations in north Bengal and Nepal.
The pact was signed during a two-day Indo-Nepal Tourism Meet that began at the Nature Interpretation Centre in Madarihat on Tuesday. The Eastern Dooars Tourism Development Association organised the meeting, which was attended by a 12-member delegation from Nepal’s Jhapa Tourism Forum, representatives of the Indian tourism body, Alipurduar MP Manoj Tigga and additional district magistrate Aqibur Rehman.
Under the agreement, the Jhapa Tourism Forum and the ETDA will work together to promote tourism between the two countries. A joint committee is also expected to organise training programmes for drivers and tourist guides working at the grassroots level. The proposed training is intended to improve the quality of services available to visitors travelling across the border.
Uday Kumar Srestha, president of the Jhapa Tourism Forum, said Nepal’s tourism sector had been affected by the recent floods, while the route towards Manasarovar remained closed. He said the situation had created an impression among some prospective visitors, including Indians, that Nepal’s tourism infrastructure had been badly affected across the country.
Srestha said prominent destinations outside the affected areas remained open and ready to receive tourists. He urged tourism stakeholders in north Bengal and elsewhere in India to encourage visitors to travel to Nepal. The comments came as the Nepal delegation sought to reassure potential travellers about the operational status of destinations not affected by the floods.
The discussions also focused on infrastructure proposals in Alipurduar. Biswajit Saha, secretary of the ETDA, said the association had submitted a memorandum to the Alipurduar district administration seeking a ropeway to Totopara, the opening of the Bhutan Ghat area for tourists and infrastructure development at the South Khayerbari mini zoo.
Saha also said tourist inflow to Bhutan had declined since 2022 after the introduction of the Sustainable Development Fee, while Nepal had subsequently recorded comparatively higher tourist footfall. The meeting did not provide figures for the decline or the increase.
Participants discussed the possibility of creating integrated religious tourism circuits for visitors from Nepal. Suggested destinations included the Madan Mohan Temple in Cooch Behar, Makrapara Kali Temple and the Shiva temple at Baneswar. The proposal would connect religious sites with the wildlife and heritage destinations of north Bengal.
Tigga said he would take the proposals to the state tourism department. He said the region could encourage visitors to spend several days in the eastern Dooars and visit Jaldapara National Park, Buxa Tiger Reserve, Chilapata forest and Cooch Behar Palace. He also proposed a tourism circuit covering Alipurduar, Cooch Behar and Jalpaiguri.
The Nepal delegation is scheduled to visit Jaldapara National Park on Wednesday as part of the two-day programme. The proposed joint committee, state-level consideration of the infrastructure requests and further cooperation between the two tourism bodies will determine the next steps after the meeting.
