Tourists hoping to catch the famous sunrise at Tiger Hill were left disappointed on Friday as taxis in Darjeeling refused to ply to the viewpoint, with drivers’ associations citing unfulfilled demands and failure of the traffic advisory committee to convene meetings.

Tiger Hill, situated at an altitude of 8,500 feet, is one of the famous tourist points in Darjeeling.

During peak tourist season, around 500 tourist vehicles reach Tiger Hill every morning. On Friday, only 12 tourist taxis reached the hilltop.

Pasang Sherpa, a representative of the Sanjukta Chalak Manch, said that the drivers had been raising several issues concerning traffic.

“The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) also formed a traffic advisory committee to look into these issues. However, a meeting of the committee has not yet been convened,” said Sherpa, who is also a member of the committee.

The advisory committee is headed by Uday Dewan, GTA Sabha member in charge of pool and transport, and includes the Darjeeling district magistrate and representatives of police and tourism stakeholders.

Some of the demands raised by the drivers include better facilities at Tiger Hill, a bar on sightseeing trips in Darjeeling town by taxis from outside the Darjeeling hills and easing traffic congestion.

“However, the committee has not yet convened the meeting. If the meeting is not conveyed by Tuesday, we might even start a hunger strike either at Lal Khoti (GTA headquarters) or Gorkha Rangamanch Bhavan (administrative building of the GTA,”
said Sherpa.

In the past few weeks, there was a simmering tension between drivers from the Darjeeling hills and the plains on the issue of restricting non-Darjeeling taxis from conducting sightseeing in Darjeeling.

On Friday, a meeting of the Joint Forum of Transport & Tourism Association was held in Siliguri. “The joint forum resolves to send a collective letter to the Darjeeling district administration, district police and the GTA, requesting immediate intervention and resolution of the (Tiger Hill) issue,” said a written statement issued by the forum.

The forum also appointed two representatives to open a dialogue with the hill-based taxi organisation to discuss the issue.

Uday Dewan, the chairman of the traffic advisory committee, said: “The GTA is looking at holding a meeting. However, many departments and stakeholders are involved in the committee. Also, GTA chief executive Anit Thapa has left for Calcutta to take up an important issue concerning the teachers. I think the meeting can be held after Christmas.”