Khoai Sonajhuri Forest | Bolpur |
Whenever we
plan a weekend to Shantiniketan its Visva Bharati which comes to our mind. But
next time it could be Khoai which is a ecological formation of small canyons
resulting from constant erosion caused by wind and water. The Khoai
Shantiniketan region in Bolpur is marked by a patch of dry forest of Sonajhuri
trees on an eroded landscape of red laterite soil. This unique look of the
forest was immortalised by Rabindranath Tagore in many of his compositions. The
Sonajhuri forest in Khoai is surrounded by the famous Kopai River, the river to
which all Bengalis are introduced as “Amader Choto Nodi......” . The weekend to
Khowai is incomplete without a visit to the Saturday Haat, where artisans of
Shantiniketan sell their wonderful artefacts sitting in the forest.
