TTT NEWS NETWORK
KOLKATA | 30 MARCH 2026
Today a press meet was held for the 3rd edition of Red Panda Festival at “The Sunday Haat-Siliguri”, 27 Church Road, Siliguri in the presence of Shri.Chabilal Khatiwada and Shri.Niraj Kattel from Tourism Office Kakarvitta, Department of Tourism, Government of Nepal, Shri.Susan Timsina, Organizing Secretary of 3rd Red Panda Festival from Sandakpur Rural Municipality, Smt.Indira Shrestha, Coordinator of Bengal in Koshi, Smt.Sanjukta Bose, Secretary of ACT (Association for Conservation & Tourism), Smt.Gitali Lahiri, Joint Coordinator of ACT Himalayan Orange Tourism Festival, Smt.Tannistha Rakshit, Coordinator of ACT Cross-Border initiatives, Smt.Shikha Khanna, member of ACT, Shri.Debojyoti Lahiri, Coordinator of ACT International Poets’ Forum, and Niladri Barua, member of ACT, Shri.Debabpratim Saha, President of Siliguri Photography Association, along with other members Shri.Achinta Gupta and Shri.Pritam Das.
Shri.Susan Timsina briefed about the festival to be held at Kalapokhari in Sandakpur Rural Municipality, ILAM District of Koshi Province in Nepal from 3rd to 6th of April, 2026. There will be visit to Sandakphu, Kalipokhari to Mabu hiking trail inauguration with walking along the trail with delegates, Kalipokhari to Kaiyakatta hiking trail walk, Sandakpur to Chhintapu hiking trail walk, Responsible Tourism related discussions, Cultural programs, and Felicitation of tourism leaders of the region.
Shri.Chabilal Khatiwada and Shri.Niraj Kattel also detailed the press about the Koshi-Visit Tourism Year and the importance of the festival and the role of ACT in Cross-Border conservation of habitat and people to people relations along the Indo-Nepal border. The entire Nepal team spoke about the importance of Siliguri as the “tourism gateway for Eastern Nepal Tourism circuits”.
The mission of the Red Panda Festival is to enhance and protect the Red Panda habitat through ecotourism, and connect the same with other habitats from the foothills, the elephant habitat to the red panda habitat. In Nepal, the Kechana to Kanchenjunga program was launched many years ago with community forests and in India the region is blessed with Protected Areas, like the Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, Senchal Wildlife Sanctuary, Singalila National Park, Kurseong Forest Division, and Baikanthapur Forest Division, confirming the protection of Habitats along the Indo-Nepal border and are linked to ecotourism circuits.
Posters, banners and booklets were launched on this occasion, related to the subject.
Already over 1500 tourists have booked to attend the third edition of the much hyped Red Panda Festival in Ilam, Sandakpur.
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