An apex body of tourism stakeholders in north Bengal posthumously conferred the lifetime achievement award on Kalyan Deb, a senior travel operator, in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the promotion and development of tourism in the eastern Himalayas.

The award was presented during the seventh edition of the Himalayan Hospitality & Tourism Awards, which was organised by the Himalayan Hospitality and Tourism Development Network (HHTDN) in association with the Bengal tourism department on the occasion of World Tourism Day (WTD) at the Mayfair tea resort on Saturday evening.

Pradip Kumar Dhanuka, a friend of Deb, received the award at the ceremony. Deb died in 2021 when he was in his late fifties.

“Kalyan Deb played a pivotal role in the growth of tourism in the eastern Himalayas through 'Balason Experience', an enterprise which he had founded in 1997...,” said Tanmoy Goswami, the joint secretary of HHTDN.

At the event, the organisation also gave away awards in 14 other categories, acknowledging the efforts of tour operators, hotels and other accommodations, associations and stakeholders for their contributions to the tourism sector of the region.

Some of the notable awardees included Kaffer Gaon, a picturesque hamlet in Kalimpong, for the best sustainable tourism destination for its stunning landscape and thriving homestay culture, Land of Campers, which is in the Gangchung village of Temi Namphing in Sikkim (best green tourism initiative award), 11 Monteviot of Kurseong (best performing rural homestay), Mayfair Hill Resort, Darjeeling, (best performing luxury hospitality unit) and the Mateli heritage tea bungalow (best tea tourism product).