Ghoom Festival 2023: Celebrating Darjeeling’s iconic Toy Train and Culture
The 3rd edition of the Ghoom Festival is set to begin from November 25, 2023 at Ghoom, Darjeeling, which is the highest railway station in India. The 15-day festival will be organized by the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR). The festival aims to promote tourism and toy train services of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway among railway enthusiasts and tourists.
This year the festival begins two weeks late as compared to previous year. In 2022, the Ghoom Festival began on November 12. The director of DHR, Priyansh says that this year the major festivals like Diwali and Chhath Puja ends by November 24. As per their plans to begin the Ghoom Festival only after these festivities, the opening date was fixed for November 25.
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The director of DHR highlighted that their main objective is to promote the toy train service among railway enthusiasts and tourists across the globe. He emphasizes that the DHR wants to spread message about the need to preserve the British era railway service which has always been able to attract large number of tourists to Darjeeling Hills.
The festival will provide a platform for artists, performers, craftsmen, engineers and workers to showcase their creativity to the world and increase their earnings. It is a huge step by DHR in the direction of preservation of the local culture of the region and justification of its UNESCO World Heritage status.
The Darjeeling toy train services came into existence in the British era and was built with local hands. Its exceptional engineering and popularity as a tourist attraction earned it a UNESCO World Heritage status in 1999.
This festival brings DHR closer to the people, and celebrates the history, culture, cuisine, and the diversity of Darjeeling. As tourism is one of the major sources of income for the people from the region, initiatives like “Ghoom Festival” will go a long way in boosting the tourism and economy of the place.
The festival will also exhibit local handicrafts and Darjeeling tea. Tourists will have the opportunity to visit tea plantations, enjoy adventure sports and see exotic locations.
Recently the NFR announced the operation of four special joyrides from October 13th. With the addition of the four special joyrides, currently there are 12 joyrides operated every day.
The joyrides services have been taken full advantage by the tourist during this year’s Durga Puja festival. There were enough tourist enjoying the joyrides during Durga Puja. As per a railway source, there are no vacant seats available for the next two weeks.
