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Uttarakhand govt mulls promoting electric vehicles on Char Dham routes
The state government has received several proposals for such rallies and it is planning to link these rallies with other tourism schemes and circuits so that tourists are able to get a glimpse of the pristine culture of the state and the same would also benefit the locals involved in tourism activities.
The Uttarakhand government is planning to promote the use of electric vehicles on Char Dham routes to protect the fragile ecology and environment of the Himalayan state.
State tourism minister Satpal Maharaj speaking on the sidelines of a flagging off ceremony of the Hoossein memorial rally, said, “We have received several suggestions on running electric vehicles on Char Dham routes. We are in talks with various electric vehicle manufacturing companies and have urged them to open electric vehicle charging stations on Char Dham routes along with cafeterias so that pilgrims or tourists can enjoy the local cuisine while they are charging their vehicles,” he said.
“If electric vehicles are used during the Char Dham yatra, it would not only help the state but the country as a whole in saving valuable foreign exchange that is spent on fuel,” he said.
The tourism minister also spoke on the plans of the Uttarakhand government to promote winter tourism in the state.
On Wednesday, over 100 cars of different makes participated in the Nazir Hoossein memorial rally that was organised to retrace the iconic 1981 Himalayan Rally route. The event was flagged off by tourism minister Satpal Maharaj along with cabinet minister Ganesh Joshi from the Savoy Hotel in Mussoorie.
“It is indeed an occasion of joy that a rally in memory of Nazir Hoossein, the architect behind the earlier editions of the Himalayan car rally that helped in putting the area on the international tourism map, is being flagged off from the Savoy which has been host to all such rallies in the past,” Satpal Maharaj said.
The state government has received several proposals for such rallies and it is planning to link these rallies with other tourism schemes and circuits so that tourists are able to get a glimpse of the pristine culture of the state and the same would also benefit the locals involved in tourism activities, he added.
Rajan Sayal the co-organiser of the event said, “The Himalayan car rally has succeeded in creating interest internationally among tourists and has opened a window to the pristine beauty of the state of Uttarakhand.”
Nazir Hoossein in whose memory the rally was organised was the chief architect in conceptualising all Himalayan Rallies from 1980-1990.
