Ukium: A tourist spot so near yet so far!

Part-1

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Dec 11: Ukium, some 70 km from Guwahati (two-hour journey), is still a virgin territory in so far as tourism is concerned. How come the magers of tourism in the State missed such a spot that looks like a tural mosaic of hilly streams, blue hills with lush green vegetation?

Ukium is located under Chhaygaon LAC in Kamrup district along the Assam-Meghalaya border. The confluence of three rivers – Drone, Sree and Dilma – adds to the beauty of Ukium, inhabited mostly by Garos and other ethnic people who have diverse languages and cultures. The three rivers teem with various fish species. The most popular among them is a species of eel. The local people have a firm belief that the consumption of this fish prevents blistering in the event of burning.

The diversities in the traditions of the Garos and other tribes inhabiting Ukium, their food habits and cuisines and the like do make it an arresting cultural mosaic. The rivers here have boating facilities. Angling, mouth-watering ethnic delicacies and colourful attires make the area a perfect tourist spot.

The warmth and hospitality of the local people there beats ture’s bounty. The 100-metre-long hanging bridge, the only connection between Assam and Meghalaya in that area, is a landmark here. The location of the place near Lokapriya Gopith Bordoloi Intertiol Airport at Borjhar is an added advantage for it to be projected as a tourist destition.

The area has great prospects for Endi and Muga cultivation too.

Till a few years back, Ukium had no road link to the outside world. The local people had to cough up Rs 300 just to reach Chhaygaon, a 26-km stretch, by pillion riding. Now the spot can be reached by other vehicles as well with a pucca road in place.

The three-day river festival that began on December 10 at Ukium at the confluence of Drone, Sree and Dilma is a perfect showcase of the tural, cultural and ethnic beauties amid harmonious coexistence. Garo girls with DoMe (a traditiol Garo headgear made of bird feathers) on their heads add to the exotic loveliness of the festival. The local people are displaying wicker works, wooden and bamboo crafts, local grains at the festival that will conclude on December 12.