The Kiriburu hills: Picture perfect

Jamshedpur, Jan. 6: Saranda forests, that had lost its charm under the shadow of Maoist terror, seems to have come alive in the New Year with hundreds of picnickers thronging the hills to usher in 2010.

Over the first three days of January, at least 800 tourists, mostly picnickers, visited Kiriburu hills known for its view of the setting sun.

Divisional forest officer at Saranda S.R. Natesh revealed that since December 31, Kiriburu saw more than 800 tourists, almost double the number recorded last year.

“Although we do not maintain any statistics of visitors to Kiriburu hills, but according to rough estimates, over 800 people have so far visited the place since December 31,” he said.

Most visitors, he added, preferred to travel by the Howrah-Barbil-Janshatabdi Express, enjoy the day at Kiriburu, and return by the same train in the evening. “The only thing picnickers need to do is to agree to a half an hour ride from Bolani in Barbil to Kiriburu,” said the senior forest official, adding that last year the number of visitors was a trickle.

Forest officials were delighted that Saranda was drawing visitors again. The massive deployment of forces since October 2009, that ensured peaceful Assembly elections, managed to create a sense of security among people.

This may have led to visitors regaining confidence to make the journey, even if for a day _ a notable turnaround from the days when Maoists blew up all the forest guest houses in the buffer zone of Saranda, known for its sal forests.

Sources revealed that over the last year, several private travel agencies resumed operations to Kiriburu from Chaibasa in West Singhbhum and Barbil in Orissa’s Keonjhar district. Moreover, a number of new private lodges had come up.

“Rebels never target tourists or picnickers. That’s why despite the presence of Naxalites in the Saranda forests, people from Bengal and Orissa keep coming back,” said a local tour operator.