Entry fee for Tiger Hill

The tourists visiting Tiger Hill in Darjeeling will now have to mandatorily pay an entry fee of Rs 50. Tighter Hill is the summit of Ghoom, which happens to be the highest railway station in the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A panoramic view of Mount Everest and Mount Kangchenjunga are enjoyed here by the tourists and it is Darjeeling’s famous sunrise point. The entry fee has been put into effect buy the chief wildlife warden of the state, who has the authority to charge entry fee in protected areas under the Wildlife (Protection) Act. Jiju Jeaesper J, the divisional forest officer of Darjeeling said, “The initiative has been taken also to increase the revenue collection, around 40 per cent of which will be distributed among joint forest management committees that are run by people living in forest villages. The funds can be used for development activities in their areas”. There are currently 31 forest villages under the division. However, the travel agencies are not quite happy regarding the entry fees since people have already booked their tours for Puja. Pradip Lama, Darjeeling Association of Travel Agents, said, “People are being charged to see wildlife. When there is no wildlife for tourists to view”.