Calcutta, Sept. 16: The railways have identified land 500m from the sea in Digha and on Hill Cart Road in Siliguri to build budget hotels, shopping malls and book stalls for tourists.

Of the 49 such complexes to be built across the country, six will be in Bengal.

The other four sites planned are Tarapith, Ganga Sagar, Burdwan and Majerhat.

The Digha facility will be on 25 acres near the railway station.

“The area is not developed now. But since the introduction of two daily trains between Digha and Calcutta, the number of people using the route has increased manifold,” said a railway official.

Tamralipta Express and Kandari Express, which had 14 coaches between them when they began running, now have 17 to cater to the tourist rush.

On an average, they carry around 2,000 passengers everyday. “So a hotel and other facilities close to the station will be a convenience,” the official said.

“Unlike in other coastal towns, Digha station is not far from the sea, which makes the property position even better,” he added.

Siliguri will actually get two “multi-functional complexes” — one at Air View More on Hill Cart Road in the heart of the town and the other adjacent to the New Jalpaiguri station, which all tourists going to north Bengal and Sikkim use.

“Both locations are ideal. Air View More is close to the Mahananda bridge that all vehicles bound for Darjeeling and Gangtok use. Also, the bus terminuses — Bengal’s Tenzing Norgay stand and one for Sikkim vehicles — are close by. So the area always has tourists,” said an official of the Indian Railways Construction Company (Ircon).

“The New Jalpaiguri station is the largest in north Bengal and at least 45 long-distance trains stop there every day.”

Ircon and the Rail Land Development Authority will work on the projects.

All the plots belong to the railways. Land for the four other projects in Bengal will be identified soon, the official said.

The plans have been sent to the railway ministry for the final approval, though the project cost is yet to be finalised.

In her budget speech, railway minister Mamata Banerjee had announced that Digha, Darjeeling (district), Ganga Sagar and Tarapith would be four places where commercial complexes were to come up. “Burdwan and Majerhat in Calcutta were added to the list later,” an Ircon official said.

Ircon employees in Bengal are excited because the projects have offered them some work. “For four years, we had no projects in the state. The new projects will give a boost to the organisation,” said Jayanta Guha Thakurta, a leader of its employees’ union.