Siliguri, Nov. 4: The West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation (WBTDC) is worried over the poor tourist inflow to the Mahananda Wild Life Sanctuary.

In spite of the WBTDC’s best efforts to lure nature lovers to the hotspot, located on the outskirts of Siliguri, the siltation in the Mahananda river is keeping tourists away.

The situation worsened during the monsoon about three years ago when acute siltation washed away several bridges and damaged approach roads, making the sanctuary off limits for tourists.

“We had introduced weekly tours in the area a few years ago. Though the response was pretty good initially, tourist arrivals nose-dived three years ago because of the siltation problem. In fact, it snapped links with most of the local spots,” said Subrata Sengupta, operation manager (north), WBTDC.

“A large part of the sanctuary is still submerged due to heavy erosion. The bridge that connects Sukna with 10the Mile via Gulma is under renovation. Once repair work is complete, holidaymakers can gain access to the out-of-bounds sanctuary,” said Raju Das, district forest officer, wildlife division I.

Samrat Sanyal, general secretary, Eastern Himalayan Travel and Tour Operators’ Association (EHTTOA), echoedDas.

“Wildlife tourism has been greatly affected because of this problem. Though the area offers great scope for trekking, the facility cannot be availed of since most of the routes have been washed away,” Sanyal said.

“At present, the only visitors the sanctuary gets are the students, who go there to see the natural interpretation centre,” he added.

Supratim Basu, a member of EHTTOA, said: “Despite the overwhelming problems, the sanctuary boasts of immense tourist potential, which can only be realised if the authorities pay attention.”

Das assured that a turnaround was in the offing. “A meeting with the forest officials was held recently to give boost to eco-tourism at the sanctuary. The tour operators had sought permission for nature trails in the fringe areas and into Chongtong, which is rich in both flora and fauna. The forest department is now mulling over these proposals,” said Sengupta.

But, despite these grandiose plans, many of the spots are still inaccessible to the tourists.

“The tourists will only be allowed to enter the buffer zone. We will also introduce regular patrolling in the area, once nature lovers start visiting the sanctuary,” said Das.