Bengal's 'Switzerland' in utter neglect

CHARKHOLAY/RISHAP: When two-year-old Angela Gurung caught a severe cold a few months ago, the only thing that her parents could do was to feed her a couple of drops of kerosene oil. "That is the only remedy we have here. There are no doctors here for miles around, no hospitals and no chemists," said the child's father, who owns a small shop and eatery at the extremely picturesque tourist destination of Charkholay.

A few years ago, Charkholay - nestled among the hills in the Kalimpong subdivision of Darjeeling - was adjudged the most promising tourist destination in the state. Since then, a couple of resorts and several 'Home Stay' arrangements have come up in the village. There are only two shops in the village of which one belongs to the Gurungs. The nearest medical facility is at Kalimpong, which is nearly 50 km away. Gurung's shop stocks some medicine for local villagers. When asked what these are, he brought out a couple of strips of paracetamol tablets.

"What else can I keep? Our village is still better as there is a motorable road (a jeep track through the Neora Valley) up to it. There are several villages all around from where people come here in the hope of getting a ride to Loleygaon or Kalimpong. Some of these villagers have to trek for up to 10-12 km along hill tracks to reach Charkholay. If anybody falls ill, family members try to get a vehicle from here. If it happens after dark, the patient has to be carried on foot. Children have to trudge for 3 km each way to reach school," Gurung said.

Though there is a trickle of tourists to Charkholay, life for the hardworking people who live here has not changed for the better. Arun Chhetri, a villager, revealed how the last two years were extremely bad for the village due to the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha agitations.

"There was no tourist traffic. Today, we beg to people to visit Charkholay and spend a couple of nights here. That is how the villagers can survive. We have faith in Mamata Didi. It is she who can do something for us. The two important things that we need are water and health facilities. We can take care of everything else," Chhetri said.

There is little rest for the people here. When they are not doing whatever they can to earn a few bucks, villagers get together to repair the main road with stone and earth. They hope that a 'better' road will attract more tourists to the village.

Rishap is a far better known tourist destination than Charkholay. Though dotted with resorts of various sizes, this location lacks basic facilities like doctors or schools. "Mamata Didi has promised a lot. We can only hope that she delivers. My 10-year-old son has to walk five km to reach school. As there are no facilities here, I have put my daughters in a boarding school in Kalimpong. We have to travel to Kalimpong for even basic needs. Why can't the government take care of our needs? How much does it cost to set up a health centre here with a couple of paramedics," said Vin Chhetri, a resort owner in Rishap.

TOI