GTA have decided to bring back the lost glory of century old Victoria Falls one of the major tourist attraction in Darjeeling in the past and more importantly the bridge has been the Darjeeling town with Amar Gram, Rajbari, Sidranbong villages and Arya tea garden.
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| Victoria Falls or Chayang-Chanyanga Pul Darjeeling |
The 110-feet-long bridge, also known as Chayang-Chanyanga Pul was built in 1912. Victoria Bridge 2km from the town was major tourist attraction because of its picturesque views. Tourists used to come to the bridge on horseback earlier to see the waterfalls.
The bridge was designed by George Patrick Robertson in 1912. Robertson was the engineer of the Darjeeling municipality at that time and he had also designed other municipal buildings in Darjeeling.”
Victoria Falls was one of the major water source that feed the Sidrapong hydel project, which is considered to be the oldest hydel power station in Asia. The plant was built in 1897.Waterfall in the area has dried up over the years and the spot has turned into a garbage dump site. Concrete buildings have mushroomed in the area blocking the view of the mountain range, prompting travel agents to drop Victoria Falls from their tour itinerary.
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| GTA chief BimalGurung inspecting Victoria Falls |
“ The existing bridge is very old and the risk of accidents is high as heavy vehicles pass through it regularly. If a steel bridge is constructed parallel to it, the old bridge will continue standing and we need not worry about accidents taking place, ” said Sonam Bhutia, executive director of the GTA tourism department.
Bimal Gurung on solical media wrote: ” Today I visited the heritage Chayang-Chanyanga Pul near Rajbari area in Darjeeling which is more than a century old.
This Bridge connects the Darjeeling town with Rajbari and Sidranbong villages and Arya tea garden.
The GTA has decided to construct an alternative bridge next to the existing one as cracks had developed on the bridge.
The bridge was once a major tourist attraction because of the picturesque Victoria Falls and we are committed to bring back it’s lost glory. ”
Birman Singh, general secretary of the Victoria Falls Protection Society that was established in 2004, welcomed the GTA’s decision to beautify the area and build a new bridge.
