The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) has leased out nine tourism properties in the Sandakphu-Phalat area to private parties after they failed to generate enough revenue.

The nine properties are mostly lodges and trekking huts located along the Himalayan trail.

“We had recently conducted a survey of all these nine properties and it was estimated that we would have to spend around Rs 6.72 crore just on their repairs. The properties have not been generating revenues as desired,” said Noran Sherpa, the GTA Sabha member in charge of tourism.

Sandakphu, situated at an altitude of around 12,000 feet, is the highest point in Bengal.

The region is famous for the trekking trail which is situated along the open India-Nepal border area. The trek, spread over six-to-seven days, usually starts from Maneybhanjyang, located about 24km from Darjeeling, and ends either at Maneybhanjyang or in Rimbick.

One can also travel to Sandakphu and Phalut, situated 21km apart, in 4X4 vehicles.

“After the Covid-19 pandemic, the flow of international tourists had come to a halt. Their arrival started picking pace from last month,” said a travel agent.

Most of the tourist lodges were built by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) which was replaced by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) in 2012.

“At the moment, there are 26 tourism properties under the GTA. We are examining their financial health,” said Sherpa, hinting that other properties could also be leased out to private properties.

A section in the hills, however, alleged that the GTA let the nine properties out to those who had no experience in the industry.

“People who are close to the power corridors in the GTA are getting these properties on rent,” said a local resident.

Sherpa denied the allegation.

“We had kept a base value for each property and there was an online tender with the highest bidders bagging the property to run it,” said Sherpa.

He added that a committee formed by the GTA had overseen the process of renting out the tourist accommodations and taken a decision based on their financial health.

Tourism is one of the mainstays of the economy in the hills. There are, however, complaints that many tourist spots have not been kept up to the mark.

“Several taxi operators have stopped taking tourists to Rock Garden and Gangamaya Park because of the poor condition of roads,” said a travel agent. “Many sites are unkempt.”