Rural Tourism for Sustaining Rural Livelihoods in Darjeeling Hills

The rural areas of Darjeeling with 70% share of the total population are far flung and communication infrastructure almost non-existent. Access to the market is extremely difficult leading to an accentuated exploitative structure with remuneration for agricultural produce extremely low for the farmers. One of the effective ways of breaking from this bondage is in promoting, facilitating and strengthening people's organizations. These strengthening organizations will lead to development, of many one such activity being rural tourism or Community based tourism. The formal introduction of tourism was only in 1938 when the first hotel, The Darjeeling Family Hotel, was constructed. Till 1975, tourism was managed privately with little encouragement or interference by the government. The Tourism Department of the Government of West Bengal came into being in 1958, and the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation in November 1975, with the task of supplying the visitors with basic information about places of tourist interest. The area chosen for the present study has been delineated as cultural region where the elements in the landscape are closely interrelated. Darjeeling, known as the queen of the Himalayas is situated in the Northern Part of the Indian state of West Bengal. The ultimate aim of this study is to examine the trends and development of tourism in Darjeeling Hills and their impact on rural development for sustainable livelihood of the rural poor. Tourism is an important economic activity in this hilly area generating incomes and employment for the local population. The tourists every year spend to the tune of Rs. 70 crores. Darjeeling receives around 3.5 lakhs domestic tourists annually, besides 50, 000 foreigners. Everybody right from a chaiwala upto the hotel owner benefits from the tourism. Apart from an increase in the income and the demand for local products, tourism also results in a multiplier effect. This refers to the way in which tourist expenditures filter through the economy and generate other economic activities. It reveals further that due to development of village tourism in Darjeeling Hills, the economy of the rural people has been improved drastically who are directly and indirectly associated to tourism.

In the rural areas of Darjeeling Hills, due to lack of proper hotel and other mode of accommodation for tourist, the concept of homestay has been flourished empowering the rural livelihood. Till date most of the local people of Darjeeling has seen tourism as a boon but it remains unquestioned by the masses whether it is really a boon. Because, ever since Darjeeling has been made the thrust area of tourism, we have seen adverse affects on its environment. The resource of Darjeeling is put under much strain during the tourist season. The people experience shortages ranging from fuel to water, Darjeeling being famous for its water crisis. And even if mass tourism does reach to the rural areas, the effects tourism will have on the value systems, culture and as mentioned above the health and environment remains to be assessed and analysed to come up with a suitable solution.