Bhairabkunda festival to start from Jan 16

The eighth edition of the Bhairabkunda festival will be being held with a five-day extravaganza from January 16 to January 20 next at Bhairabkunda in Assam.

It is 24 kilometers north of Udalguri town in central north Assam and 137 km away from Guwahati. The festival is being hosted in a bid to tap the tourism potential of Bhairabkunda – a picturesque tri-junction located in the Himalayan foothills adjoining Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Bhutan.

The tourism festival is also aimed to register its unmatched natural beauty on the tourism map of the country. A reception cum festival management committee has been working these days which is headed by Assam minister, Rihon Daimari; Speaker of BTC Assembly, Tridip Daimari and MCLA of Bhairabkunda BTC constituency, Ripen Daimari.

The celebration committee members expressed that the Bhairabkunda festival would reflect the age-old bond of fraternity, unity, and integrity among the diverse ethnic and linguistic groups including those from neighboring Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh.

The members also said its mission is to give an exposure to the tourism prospects, self-employment opportunities for the educated unemployed youths and prevail the communal harmony and tranquility in the region.

The festival will also feature cultural exchange programs among Bhutan, Arunachal Pradesh, and Assam. The Bhairabkunda tourism festival will also feature adrenaline rushing of adventures like paragliding, elephant safari, helicopter joy riding besides cultural exchange programs, ethnic food festivals, night stays, ethnic fashion show, cultural nights by the local and invited artists, seminars on eco-tourism, etc.

The Joint Forest Management Committee (JFMC) man-made forest of Bhairabkunda (Gedsimani Forest) spread across an area of 5500 bighas at Bhairabkunda near Dhansiri river also gives a picture-perfect getaway destination to unwind in its serenity and share romantic time in the lap of mother nature.

The plantation process started in 2007 in a plot of barren sandy land near Bhairabkunda. The 22.24 square kilometer area of Bhairabkunda Reserve Forest was left without a single tree by the early 1980s due to the rampant illegal felling of trees in the region.

Theinitiative was taken by a joint forest management committee formed by localenthusiasts from adjoining villages namely, No 1 Mazorgaon, No 2 Mazorgaon,Bhairabpur, Goraimari, Sonaigaon and Sapangaon.

The JampaniRiver, originating in Bhutan and Bhairabi River merge in Bhairabkunda to formDhanshiri River. Dhanshiri River is a major tributary of Brahmaputra River. Aspecial attraction of Bhairabmubda is the thrill of visiting a foreign land,Bhutan with ease.People can cross the international border on footand enjoy the scenic beauty of the adjacent Daifam town. There is also asuspension bridge made with steel cables that connects Bhairabkunda withDaifam.