Siliguri, Sept. 16: Official records have shown that the Dooars is fast emerging as a prominent destination for tourists. There has been a seven time increase in the number of people who have visited Gorumara National Park–Chapramari Wildlife Sanctuary–Lataguri circuit in the past nine years.

Forest officers, while reeling out the figures extrapolated from records at ticket counters, booking registers and other documents, expressed satisfaction over the rise in the inflow of tourists to the region.

“The figures establish the fact that thousands are interested in visiting the Dooars, especially Gorumara and Lataguri,” said Tapas Das, the divisional forest officer (wildlife-II).

“However, conservation of nature and wildlife is still our priority. A series of restrictions and rules have been made to ensure that development of the Dooars as a tourism destination does not affect the nature and wildlife,” he added.

Das said the number of tourists, especially from Calcutta, during Puja this year would go up. “Not a single room in any of our bungalows and cottages is vacant till the end of the season,” said the officer. This might be in sharp contrast to the scene in Darjeeling where stakeholders are apprehensive of a low turnout of Bengali budget tourists this year.

Currently, the forest department has one bungalow each in Gorumara and Chapramari. It has many cottages also at Panjhora in Chapramari and Kalipur and Dhupjhora in Gorumara.

Private players also speak about the tourism growth in the Dooars. There are 31 private resorts in the area as against a single one a decade ago.

“The number of tourists is increasing every year and it is difficult to provide rooms to more people during Puja this year. Our agents in Calcutta are flooded with enquiries and are desperately asking for accommodation at least for a day,” said Kamal Bhowmik, the secretary of the Lataguri Resort Owners’ Association.”