A new weekly rural market beside the Holong river near Jaldapara National Park in Alipurduar has opened to give tourists an additional activity while creating a direct marketplace for local communities, officials and organisers said.
The Jaldapara Paryatan Haat was inaugurated by Alipurduar district magistrate Mayuri Vasu on Sunday, the occasion of World Tourism Day. It has been established opposite the entrance to the Madarihat tourist lodge on a teak-covered stretch of land that had remained largely unused.
The market will operate every Thursday from 2pm to 5pm. Jeep and elephant safaris in Jaldapara are suspended on Thursdays, and organisers said the timing would give visitors an alternative activity during the second half of the day.
The initiative has been taken by the Eastern Dooars Tourism Development Association in cooperation with the Alipurduar district administration. The site is planned along the lines of Sonajhuri Haat in Santiniketan, with stalls for traditional clothing, food and handicrafts made or presented by communities from the region.
The participating communities include the Toto, Rava, Mech, Gorkha and Adivasi communities. Around 20 self-help groups will operate stalls at the venue. Visitors will also be able to attend cultural programmes presented by different community groups and access the activities for a nominal amount, according to the report.
The organisers expect the haat to help local stall owners and artisans benefit more directly from tourist footfall during Jaldapara’s tourism season. The initiative is also intended to provide an alternative source of livelihood for people from backward communities.
“We plan to develop the site similar to Sonajhuri Haat in Santiniketan. We hope it will soon attract tourists visiting this region,” Vasu said.
Biswajit Saha, secretary of the Eastern Dooars Tourism Development Association, said the haat would allow tourists to spend Thursday afternoons at the teak-forest site. The market’s next operating cycle and future visitor response will determine how the new tourism space develops.
