The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) will spend a sum of ₹2 crore to repair and restore a road that connects the Triveni, the confluence of the Teesta and Rangeet rivers in Kalimpong.

Triveni is also a popular site for riverside camping and white water rafting in the Teesta, with food stalls on the bank, earning the sobriquet of “mini Goa”.

“A fund of ₹2 crore has been approved for repairing and restoration works of the road that leads to the (Triveni) campsite from Teesta Bazar. Work will begin soon,” said Norden Sherpa, the executive sabhasad of the GTA (tourism).

In October 2023, due to the flash flood in the Teesta, the campsite and the road suffered extensive damage.

Because of the pathetic condition of the road, those who run camps and other facilities by the Triveni located around 55km are staring at a crisis as tourist footfall has come down steeply.

Altogether, there are 33 camps and 23 food stalls on the site from which over 500 people earn their livelihood.

Sanjok Gupta, the Trinamool coordinator of the Teesta Highway unit, said that although around 15 months had passed since the flash flood, no initiative had been taken to repair the road and the campsite area in Triveni.

“It was a popular site and some would even call it ‘mini Goa’ during the summer months. We have submitted memorandums to the Kalimpong district administration, the GTA, and officials of NHPC, seeking their intervention. The campsite needs restoration so that tourists can camp here during the upcoming summer season,”
said Gupta.

Ashish Thapa, the president of Triveni Camping Welfare Association, said, they were waiting for the repairs to start.

“If the road is repaired, we will start getting tourists again. After the disaster (flash flood), most visitors didn’t want to come because of the bad road. We have faced huge losses,” said Thapa.