A rhododendron park is being set up at Mungpoo, which is famed for its cinchona plantation and its tryst with Rabindranath Tagore.

The fruit processing and horticulture department of the state government has sanctioned a sum of Rs 68 lakh for the project to be set up across 5 acres of land.

The project is being undertaken by the directorate of cinchona and other medicinal plants which comes under the horticulture department.

Rhododendrons flower between February and April.

“We are working on setting up a rhododendron park under the plantation area. The project is coming up at Rungbee division in Mungpoo,” Samuel Rai, the director of the plantation, told The Telegraph on Tuesday.

Work on the project started three years back. So far, 1,000 saplings have been planted in the area. Around 500 have shown steady growth.

“We are expecting the plants to be fully matured within the next five years,” said Rai.

Fencing of the park area and setting up other infrastructure like pathways have already been completed. The place, which is situated on a hilltop beside the 3rd Mile -Mungpoo road provides a panoramic view of Kanchenjunga.

“The view is stunning. Even the sunrise is spectacular from that point,” said a local.

Many believe that the park will boost tourism in the region.

“Mungpoo is getting a steady flow of tourists because of its connection with Rabindranath Tagore. The state government has also come up with guest houses in the place. This park would be an added attraction,” said a local.

It was in 1938 that the Nobel laureate visited Mungpoo for the first time on the invitation of Manmohan Sen, the husband of acclaimed writer Maitreyi Devi. Sen was the director of the quinine factory then.

While Tagore stayed at the plantation’s guest house Suriel bungalow in 1938, he stayed at the official residence of the Sen’s when he visited Mungpoo twice in 1939 and in 1940 for the last time.

During his stay at the bungalow, he penned a number of poems, which include “Janmadin,” “Shanai” and “Nabojatok.”

This official residence of Sen has been converted into Rabindra Bhavan and is a huge tourist attraction.

At the rhododendron park, a bust of Thomas Anderson has also been set up.

Anderson, a botanist from Scotland had taken the initiative to successfully cultivate cinchona following which the plantation was established in Mungpoo, about 30 kilometres from Darjeeling, way back in 1864.