Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) chief Binay Tamang on Saturday asked residents of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong and Mirik towns to carry out cleanliness drives in their wards and across civic areas as a preparation to welcome tourists to the hills after a six-month gap.

Tamang, speaking at a meeting in Tukvar on the outskirts of Darjeeling town, said: “There are indications that tourists will start coming to the hills from next month. Hotels would open up across the hills. Keeping this in view, I request residents of all the civic wards of these four towns to start the cleanliness drive. The drive would continue till September 27, that is, till the World Tourism Day.”

Tamang said that his party would hand over cash rewards — of Rs 20,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000 — to ward committees of the top three wards of each municipality based on their performance in this clean-up drive. “There will be a panel of judges who will confidentially make the assessment,” he said.

In the hills, there are 32 wards in Darjeeling, 20 in Kurseong and 23 in Kalimpong civic area. Mirik, upgraded into subdivisional headquarters by the Mamata Banerjee government a few years back, has nine wards.

The prod from Tamang to keep the hill towns clean for tourists is seen as a confidence-building measure by those associated with the tourism sector. Earlier efforts by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) to invite tourists to the hills didn’t yield desired results as some local people opposed tourist inflow because of the pandemic situation. This made tourist stakeholders from different segments hold extensive talks. Last week the administrations of Darjeeling and Kalimpong issued notifications that hotels could run with proper health safety protocols.

“By announcing the cleanliness drive, Binay Tamang seems to have tried to pass the missive to the hill residents that they should welcome tourists and simultaneously try to keep their areas clean. Collective participation of residents of civic areas in the drive will also give a message to those who intend to visit the hills and boost the morale of those associated with travel trade,” said a Darjeeling hotelier.

At the meeting, Tamang also said he had taken the initiative to get the statue of the Gorkha soldier re-installed atop the Gorkha Rang Mancha Bhawan in Darjeeling town. In 2014, the statue had been removed from the Bhawan.

“I have sent separate letters to the chairman of the BoA and principal secretary of the GTA for re-installing the Gorkha soldier’s statue at Gorkha Rang Manch Bhawan. The statue is the symbol of bravery of our soldiers. I have requested that the re-installation should be done on October 2, the birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation,” he said.