

Digha
is West Bengal's most popular sea resort. Originally known
as Beerkul, it is mentioned as the "Brighton of the East"
in one of Warren Hasting's letters (1780 AD) to his wife.
In 1923, an English tourist John Frank Smith was charmed
by the beauty of Digha and started living here. His writings
about Digha slowly gave exposure to this place. After independence,
he convinced West Bengal's chief minister Dr. Bidhan Chandra
Roy to develop Digha as a beach resort.
A small town, Digha is crowded with hotels generally around
one main road. Its proximity to Calcutta (187 kms) attracts
tourists throughout the year. Digha is a hard beach where
one can drive during low tide. The beach is however facing
the problem of sea erosion.
Bathing
is advisable only during the low tide. One can view both sunrise
and sunset at Digha sea beach.
New
Digha
New
Digha is an extension of Digha. It too has several hotels.
There is a small park with a lake here.
Shankarpur
Not
far from Digha (appx 14 kms) is the Shankarpur Fishing Harbour
Project. It is also being developed as a beach resort.
Chandaneshwar
Only
8 kms from Digha, Chandaneshwar is the site of an old Shiva
temple.
Access
Rail:
Digha is well connected with Rail from Howrah as well as Kharagpur. From Howrah daily 2 trains and from Kharagpur weekly 1 train is running.
Road:
Route 1. Calcutta-Howrah-Mechheda-Norghat-Contai-Ramnagar-Digha:
185 km.
Route 2. Calcutta-Deulti-Kolaghat-Kharagpur-Digha: 243 km.
Route 3. Tarakeswar-Harinkhola-Arambag-Vishnupur-Kharagpur-Digha:
355 km
Bus
: Regular direct buses are available from Calcutta to Digha.
C.S.T.C. Express buses ply from Esplanade (Calcutta) from 0630
hours to 1000 hours (Fare Rs.30/-). Luxury buses from West Bengal
Tourist Bureau, 3/2 B.B.D.Bagh departs daily at 0700 hours (Fare
Rs.40/-).
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