The Hindu Business Line : Drink in the beauty

You have 58,000 acres of rolling hills and mountain folds to roam about without a care in the world." That's how Chacko P. Thomas of Munnar's Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Company (KDHP) introduces you to `The Tea Sanctuary', the company's plantation tourism venture. "All our tea estates, factories and spice gardens are at your disposal — to explore, enjoy and relax."

Launched late last year on an experimental basis, the Sanctuary has attracted several tourists, particularly `honeymoon' visitors.

The outside view of a tea-estate bungalow.

The century-old KDHP, in the high ranges of Kerala's Idukki district, is South India's largest tea company. Once home to the leisurely lifestyle of its European inhabitants that included hunting, angling and tennis and golf games, these estates are the main attraction of Munnar.

"Tourists stay in our heritage bungalows located in the midst of tea gardens," Thomas says. These airy and spacious bungalows, built by the British in the 1930s and 1940s, were once the homes of tea estate managers. When the tea company, formerly owned by Tata Tea, was reorganised last year, several bungalows, with period furniture, were redone to meet the modern tourist's needs and tastes. In a few months, another 20 bungalows would be added.

The inside view of a a tea-estate bungalow

Many of the bungalows have a fireplace and three to six rooms; each available at around Rs 3,500 a day (bed, breakfast and taxes included). They offer a panoramic view of the surrounding mountains; one bungalow overlooks Anamudi, South India's highest mountain peak. If the visitors are lucky enough, they can spot herds of elephants or gaurs marching close by.

The Nilgiri tahr

There are many natural streams, lakes and ponds here, which are ideal for angling. The Sanctuary also has two nine-hole golf courses, apart from tennis and squash courts. Tourists will have access to the two clubs — the High Range Club and the Kundlay Club — on the estates. The century-old High Range Club, whose wooden walls are lined by stuffed heads of Nilgiri tahr, deer and wild boars, had until recently observed a strict European dress code.

Thomas expects large arrivals at the Sanctuary in time for the blooming of the Neela Kurinji in July-September. The flower, which blooms once in 12 years, is a major attraction at Munnar. The Sanctuary was conceived after the KDH estates (then owned by Tata Tea) fell into decline following the drastic fall of tea prices. Tata Tea handed over the ownership of KDH to a new company floated by its workers. The venture, in which the workers and executives have a majority shareholding, is hailed as the largest participatory management experiment in the country.

The new company embarked on the plantation tourism project utilising its impressive facilities that included 230 sq km of mountainous territory located at 1,372-2,134 metres altitudes. The idea caught on well and the project now appears poised for growth. "A highlight of the experience is that you can see the entire process of tea manufacture — from plucking tea leaves, drying, processing in the factory to packaging," says Thomas.

Pictures by K.K. Mustafah