TAPLEJUNG-The local community in the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area (KCA) is trying to promote tourism by assuring visitors of security during their stay in the area with day-and-night patrols. We have been patrolling camp sites to make sure tourists are not looted or harassed, says Mingma Sherpa of Yamfudin VDC. Last year, some Maoists beat up an American tourist when he refused to pay them. The incident was reported in the international media, causing a sharp decline in the number of tourists visiting KCA. Now, the Maoists have realised that tourists are not coming even in the peak season and it is the rebels who are warning the villagers from harassing their guests in anyway. They have warned hoteliers and businessmen not to overcharge tourists.

It is more peaceful here now and tourists have begun visiting again, says happy villager, Ritu Gurung, from Kabeli. The KCA even provides tourists with kerosene so the surrounding forests are not cut.