West Bengal Travel Guide
About West Bengal:
West Bengal is a land of natural beauty, exquisite lyrical poetry and
enthusiastic people. Situated in the east of India, West Bengal is
stretches from the Himalayas in the north to the Bay of Bengal in the
South. This state shares international boundaries with Bangladesh,
Bhutan and Nepal. Hence it is a strategically important place. The state
is interlocked by the other states like Sikkim, Assam, Orissa and Bihar.
Hooghly and its tributaries - Mayurakshi, Damodar, Kangsabati and the
Rupnarayan, enrich the soils of Bengal. The northern districts of Bengal
like Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Bihar (in the Himalayas ranges)
are watered by the rivers Tista, Torsa, Jaldhaka and Ranjit. From the
northern places (feet of Himalayas) to the tropical forests of
Sunderbans, West Bengal is a land of incessant beauty.
Getting There:
By Air:
Calcutta is well-connected to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and
other major cities in the country. Many International airlines also
operate from Calcutta's busy international airport.
By Road:
National Highways such as the Grand Trunk Road converge at Calcutta.
Although these routes are mostly used by goods vehicles, a night-time "rocket"
bus service run by the State Transport Corporation is an alternative way
of travelling to North Bengal from Calcutta.
By Rail:
Long distance trains leave for different destinations across the
country everyday from Calcutta's two major stations Howrah and Sealdah.
The City also has a sub-urban network which extends to the surrounding
districts from the capital city.
Fact File:
Area: 88,752 sq km
Population: 80.2 million
Capital: Kolkata (formerly Calcutta)
Languages Spoken: Bengali
Best Time to Visit: October to March
Major Cities :Calcutta , Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Malda,
Mirik , Murshidabad ,Siliguri , Vishnupur
Tourist Attractions:
Santiniketan:
Shantiniketan, Tagore's university township, is a must on any itinerary
that plots Bengal as a stopover. Just two and a half hours away by rail
from Calcutta, this town in the Birbhum district is rich in culture and
art. At Tagore's residence in the Uttarayan complex, you could visit the
museum and his various homes. From Shantiniketan, you could also take a
sojourn to Bakreswar, where ancient Kali and Shiva temples rise into the
azure sky. The hot springs are famous for curing many chronic diseases.
Malda:
Malda is the base for visiting the ruined cities of Gaur and Pandua,
although it's probably more famous now for its large Fajli mangoes. One
reader wrote: 'You could probably kill yourself through overeating
mangoes in this place! Gaur is delightful, one of the nicest places we
visited in India, incredibly peaceful and beautiful'. Malda's not very
interesting, but it has a small museum.
Mirik:
Mirik is a small hill resort which has come into prominence during the
1980's. The small town is built around a 1.25 km long lake known as Lake
Samendu. The pristine lake is surrounded by high forested hills and tea
gardens. Boating in the lake is a fascinating activity for the tourists.
Mirik is also famous for its tea estates, orange orchards and cardamom
plantations.
Sundarban Tiger Reserve
A wildlife tour in India would take you to the Sunderbans, which is the
most popular tiger habitat in India. These forests are spread in an area
of 1,000,000 hectares, is the world's largest delta, formed by the
Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghana rivers. The vast swampy delta extends
over areas comprising of mangrove forests, swamps and Forest Island, all
interwoven in a network of small rivers and streams. The Sundarban
National Park, home of the Royal Bengal Tiger and the largest mangrove
forest in the world, form the core of this area.
Darjeeling:
Darjeeling, centre of India's most celebrated tea growing district, has
possibly the most picturesque views among all Indian hill resorts.
Outside the monsoon season (June to September), the views across the
snowy peak of Kanchenjunga and other mountains down to the swollen
rivers in the valley are, simply magnificent.
