HT Tourism Conclave: Uttarakhand eyes sustainable development
Speaking at the two-day Hindustan Times Tourism Conclave in Delhi, Yugal Kishore Pant, additional CEO, Uttarakhand tourism, said while the state government has been promoting homestays for the past five to six years, its demand has increased after the pandemic.
The demand for homestays in Uttarakhand has substantially increased since the Covid-19 pandemic, prompting the state government to take additional measures to promote them, officials in the state tourism department said.
The state is also working on policies to promote sustainable tourism and ensure safety of tourists, the officials added.
Speaking at the two-day Hindustan Times Tourism Conclave in Delhi, Yugal Kishore Pant, additional CEO, Uttarakhand tourism, said while the state government has been promoting homestays for the past five to six years, its demand has increased after the pandemic.
“After the pandemic, the demand for homestays has increased leaps and bounds. Now, people have started avoiding crowded places... they are avoiding bigger cities. People are exploring newer or lesser-known destinations. Another major change has been that people have stopped travelling in bigger groups,” he said.
According to the state’s tourism department, the number of registered homestays has increased from 1,500 to 3,500 in the past two years.
With a relaxation in pandemic curbs, the state has been witnessing a considerable increase in the number of tourists in the past few months.
As part of its plan to promote homestays, Uttarakhand, which is largely dependent on tourism for its revenue, has been providing financial assistance and training to its people.
Vivek Singh Chauhan, additional director, Uttarakhand tourism, said: “We are not only providing them with financial assistance but also imparting training in hospitality and marketing their facilities.”
At the event, Pant also spoke about the impact of climate change on tourism in the state.
“The impact of climate change is felt in Uttarakhand, just like other cities in the world. Our focus now is on sustainable tourism and development of the region. We are ensuring that all rules and regulations are being followed; no violations are being tolerated,” he said.
Unprecedented rainfall recently claimed at least 40 lives in Uttarakhand. More than 500 people were killed in the 2013 flash floods in Kedarnath, prompting the state government to take a series of measures to minimise impact of natural disasters. The deaths of at least 17 trekkers in the last two weeks in Uttarakhand has also pushed the state government to develop a policy to regulate the activity.
“We will not put any restrictions on trekking but provide details about the region, the type of equipment one should carry for trekking, precautionary measures that should be taken, etc,” Singh said.
With the tourism sector slowly picking pace, the state government is hopeful of economic recovery.
With close to five lakh people employed in the tourism and related sectors, Pant said it will take six months to a year for hotels to run in full capacity.
“By the end of this year, our entire population will be fully vaccinated,” he said.