A three-day festival will be organised in the plains and the hills of north Bengal from Friday to promote tourism.

The Himalayan Hospitality & Tourism Development Network (HHTDN), an apex body of tourism stakeholders in north Bengal, will organise the Bengal Himalayan Carnival in three locations from March 1 to 3.

Raj Basu, the advisor to HHTDN and a veteran in the industry, said the tourism sector had suffered a setback during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“In the past couple of years, it revived but there are still options to augment the footfall of tourists in this region. That is why our organisation is holding the fest in association with the state tourism department,” said Basu.

According to him, the carnival will be held in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and the Dooars.

The event, HHTDN representatives said, will commence at Lataguri of Jalpaiguri district on Friday. It will be jointly organised by the Lataguri Resort Owners’ Welfare Association.

On the second day, the fest will be held at Jaldhaka and Jhalong in Kalimpong district in association with the Jaldhaka Offbeat Tourism Welfare Association (JOTWA).

“Over the years, Lataguri has emerged as an eco-tourism destination for its proximity to reserve forests. On the inaugural day, the event will begin with a procession. It will be followed by cultural events, and will have sessions like interactions with tourists,” said Soumyajit Sarkar, assistant secretary of the resort owners’ association in Lataguri.

As of now, there are around 150 tourist resorts in and around Lataguri, which is on the fringes of Gorumara National Park.

Vijay Thapa, the joint secretary of JOTWA, said, Jaldhaka and Jhalong deserve promotion.

On March 3, the carnival will be held in the hill town of Mirik in association with the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration and the sub-divisional administration.