Rock Garden, Darjeeling
Encyclopedia
The Rock Garden at Chunnu Summer Falls and Ganga Maya Park, near it, are recently added tourist attraction
s in the hilly town of Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal
, India
. It is a show piece meant to lure tourists back to Darjeeling after political agitations disrupted the visit by tourists in the 1980s. There is another rock garden in Darjeeling known as Sir John Anderson Rock Garden, which is part of Lloyd's Botanical Garden
.
in 1835 and developed the area. They introduced tea gardens in the area. Townships sprang up, hotels were built and the population in the area grew rapidly. From a mere 100 souls in 1839, the population had shot up to 10,000 by 1849. Spread on hill slopes at an altitude of 2,134 metres (7,000 feet), the town and the area became a major centre of tourist attraction.
In the eighties, the movement of the Gorkha National Liberation Front
(GNLF) was in full swing in the Darjeeling Hills. The unrest affected the arrival of tourists and Darjeeling started losing out as a tourist destination. With the formation of Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council (DGAHC) in 1988, relative peace returned to the area. Since tea and tourism were the mainstay of the economy of the region, DGAHC initiated efforts to lure the tourists back to Darjeeling. “We are now focusing on not only Darjeeling town as a tourist centre, but also the region outside it,” D.T. Tamlong, principal secretary, DGAHC told Frontline
.
. The road descends rapidly into the valley. With sharp bends all the way, there are breathtaking views at many points. Tea gardens dot the hill slopes.
Constructed by The Gorkha Hill Council Tourism Department, it was inaugurated by Subhash Ghising, the GNLF supremo. The Rock Garden is not one in the conventional sense
. A multi-level picnic ground terraced around a natural waterfall, its attraction is in it “being a sort of road-side facility but with a little too much concrete.” The garden offers a beautiful view of a hill stream cascading over rocks along the slope, done up with flower gardens and sitting spaces at different levels. There also is a small lake. With tourists pouring in large numbers, tea shops and snack kiosks have come up.
Satyajit Ray
’s Kanchenjungha
(1962) helped the world discover the charm of Darjeeling, Raja Mukherjee’s directorial debut Bidhatar Khela (2007) renewed the magic of the town. Mukherjee, who had never been to Darjeeling before, was overwhelmed by the place and was surprised that the beauty of the hills has not been properly exposed to the world. After two trips to the town, he decided to capture every possible place here — from St Paul’s School to Mount Hermon, from Hotel Viceroy, Ganga Maya Park, Rock Garden, Happy Valley to even Morgan’s House in Kalimpong — in his movie.
Tourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
s in the hilly town of Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It is a show piece meant to lure tourists back to Darjeeling after political agitations disrupted the visit by tourists in the 1980s. There is another rock garden in Darjeeling known as Sir John Anderson Rock Garden, which is part of Lloyd's Botanical Garden
Lloyd's Botanical Garden
Lloyd's Botanical Garden, or Darjeeling Botanical Garden, is a botanical garden in Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal.-History:...
.
Background
The British secured Darjeeling from the Raja of SikkimChogyal
The Chogyal were the monarchs of the former kingdoms of Sikkim and Ladakh, which were ruled by separate branches of the Namgyal family. The Chogyal, or divine ruler, was the absolute potentate of Sikkim from 1642 to 1975, when its monarchy was abrogated and its people voted to make Sikkim India's...
in 1835 and developed the area. They introduced tea gardens in the area. Townships sprang up, hotels were built and the population in the area grew rapidly. From a mere 100 souls in 1839, the population had shot up to 10,000 by 1849. Spread on hill slopes at an altitude of 2,134 metres (7,000 feet), the town and the area became a major centre of tourist attraction.
In the eighties, the movement of the Gorkha National Liberation Front
Gorkha National Liberation Front
Gorkha National Liberation Front is a political party in the Darjeeling District of West Bengal, India...
(GNLF) was in full swing in the Darjeeling Hills. The unrest affected the arrival of tourists and Darjeeling started losing out as a tourist destination. With the formation of Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council (DGAHC) in 1988, relative peace returned to the area. Since tea and tourism were the mainstay of the economy of the region, DGAHC initiated efforts to lure the tourists back to Darjeeling. “We are now focusing on not only Darjeeling town as a tourist centre, but also the region outside it,” D.T. Tamlong, principal secretary, DGAHC told Frontline
Frontline (magazine)
Frontline is a fortnightly English language magazine published by The Hindu Group of publications from Chennai, India. Narasimhan Ram is the editor-in-chief of the magazine. As a current affairs magazine, it covers domestic and International news. Frontline gives a prominent place to various...
.
Rock Garden
It is situated about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Darjeeling. While proceeding from the town along Hill Cart Road, one has to turn right, well before reaching GhumGhum, West Bengal
Ghum is a small hilly locality in the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region of West Bengal, India. Ghum railway station of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is the highest railway station in India. It is situated at an altitude of 2,225.7 m...
. The road descends rapidly into the valley. With sharp bends all the way, there are breathtaking views at many points. Tea gardens dot the hill slopes.
Constructed by The Gorkha Hill Council Tourism Department, it was inaugurated by Subhash Ghising, the GNLF supremo. The Rock Garden is not one in the conventional sense
Rock Garden
The Rock Garden or Rock Garden of Chandigarh is a Sculpture garden in Chandigarh, India, also known as Nek Chand's Rock Garden after its founder Nek Chand, a government official who started the garden secretly in his spare time in 1957. Today it is spread over an area of forty-acres , it is...
. A multi-level picnic ground terraced around a natural waterfall, its attraction is in it “being a sort of road-side facility but with a little too much concrete.” The garden offers a beautiful view of a hill stream cascading over rocks along the slope, done up with flower gardens and sitting spaces at different levels. There also is a small lake. With tourists pouring in large numbers, tea shops and snack kiosks have come up.
Ganga Maya Park
Ganga Maya Park is further down the road, about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the Rock Garden. Named after an innocent victim of police firing during the GNLF agitation, “it meanders down the course of a chortling mountain stream, past gazebos, clumps of flowering shrubs and trees, over humped backed bridges under which koi-carp coruscate, and into a circular lake with paddle boats and a waterfall.” It has a small lake where boating facilities are available Gorkha folk dances are performed to entertain the tourists.Step aside
Good road conditions are essential in the hills, not only for comfortable rides but also for safety. The poor maintenance of the roads often led to protests by transporters’ associations. Amongst the bad roads in focus is the one to Rock Garden and Ganga Maya Park. DGHC maintains a vast network of roads and that they are in the process of repairing different stretches. Since it is difficult to get bitumen on time, repairs get delayed sometimes.Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...
’s Kanchenjungha
Kanchenjungha
Kanchenjungha is a 1962 Bengali film by Bengali film director Satyajit Ray. It was Ray's first original screenplay and his first colour film....
(1962) helped the world discover the charm of Darjeeling, Raja Mukherjee’s directorial debut Bidhatar Khela (2007) renewed the magic of the town. Mukherjee, who had never been to Darjeeling before, was overwhelmed by the place and was surprised that the beauty of the hills has not been properly exposed to the world. After two trips to the town, he decided to capture every possible place here — from St Paul’s School to Mount Hermon, from Hotel Viceroy, Ganga Maya Park, Rock Garden, Happy Valley to even Morgan’s House in Kalimpong — in his movie.