POKHARA, JAN 21 - A bus stand built to facilitate passengers in the heart of Pokhara has now turned into a view-point for tourists and locals alike. Take a walk near the International Mountaineering Museum (IMM) and you can see visitors standing on it and cherishing the beauty of such majestic peaks as Annapurna, and Machhapuchhre.
Just one and half years ago, the locals of Ratopahira of Pokhara Sub-Metropolitan City –17 teamed up and constructed the bus stand with the sole purpose of providing a waiting space for bus commuters.
But now the stand, on the southern part of the city, is more than a waiting space: it is a view-point from where one can enjoy the panorama of the Himalayas. Turn around and you can see the Seti River, cutting through the deep gorge. Credit goes to the enterprising individuals with the Ratopahira Tole Development Committee.
The locals are happy at the growing popularity of the spot. "We had no idea that a bus stop would be of multiple uses utility," says Krishna GC, treasurer of the committee. "People frequent this place to view the Annapura and the Machhapuchhre while some just come here to wander."
Buoyed by the success of community project of a sort, the locals are now planning to construct two small gardens in the area which was infamous for the foul stench emanating from the dump. One of the gardens will be at bus stop itself and the other will be developed just two hundred meters away from it.
The garden faces a big cliff, and plans are afoot to protect it with barbed wires. The construction cost is estimated to be approximately one million rupees, informed officials of the construction committee. The construction of gardens will be completed by February 5, the day when the IMM is scheduled to be inaugurated.Posted on: 2004-01-22 03:53

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