Darjeeling Rlys’ heritage tag in peril
Unesco worried that ongoing Gorkhaland stir might damage railway network
New Delhi, Aug. 6: The Unesco has cautioned that the damage caused to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) due to the Gorkhaland agitation may put in peril the World Heritage tag it earned in 1999.
Two prime stations Gayabari and Sonada were torched while an arson attempt was made on Elysia Building — the headquarters of the DHR during the pro-Gorkhaland bandh that entered its 53th day on Sunday.
“The DHR heritage toy train is already very vulnerable given the natural environmental surrounding and landslide and other disaster threats it faces. And, now this social turmoil has added another layer of vulnerability to it,” said section chief and programme specialist for culture at Unesco, New Delhi Office, Moe Chiba.
“We are very worried about the DHR as after the Unesco tag, it is a heritage symbol of outstanding universal value. And with all the damage caused to it during the strike, the World Heritage status enjoyed by it, may come up for review in the next World Heritage Committee meeting in 2018,” she said.
Indian Railways and Unesco are currently working on preparing a Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the DHR, work on which had begun in mid-2016. An office for the CCMP, with a team of experts, was set up in June last year at the 1896-built Kurseong Station that falls midway on the 88-km-long narrow-gauge railway network between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling.
The ongoing agitation for a separate Gorkhaland has halted the project in the hill town and Unesco has opened a temporary office for it in Delhi. —PTI