West Bengal Tourism Minister Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury on Wednesday said the State Government is exploring opportunities to introduce helicopter services to Sunderbans and the hills.

The Minister also invited investments from the hospitality industry for setting up hotels, resorts and other accommodation facilities in the outskirts of Darjeeling, to sustain the increasing footfalls to the hills.

“West Bengal has immense potential as a tourism destination…and we need to take it to a new height,” Choudhury said at an interaction with the tourism sub-committee of Confederation of Indian Industry Eastern Region here on Tuesday.

According to him, the State Tourism Department is planning to increase safaris in Dooars.

He added that the Bengal should be represented as a part of the Buddhist circuit, with the excavation of a Buddhist monastery in Malda is in progress.

The State Government may work closely with the Bangladesh in this regard, the minister pointed out.