NE BUSINESS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, JAN 18
Stating that 12 to 15 percent of the domestic tourists are Gujaratis and most of them visit Char Dham as part of spiritual tourism, Uttarakhand, a veritable trove of opportunities, wooed Gujarati investors and tourists with red carpets.
Addressing the media, Uttarakhand Tourism Secretary Sachin Kurve said that tourism is the backbone of the state. As the state is planning to facilitate hospitality infrastructures in newer and unexplored destinations and land banks where there is tremendous investment potential, it invites investors from Gujarat to use this ideal opportunity.
- The government has recently started a helicopter service to offer Himalaya Darshan from George Everest in Mussoorie
- Uttarakhand is targeting 70 million domestic tourists in the next couple of years from its current estimated 35+ million
”Tourism is a major industry and a significant contributor to the state’s GDP, while at the same time employing a sizeable chunk of the state’s working population. Gujarat, among the top five states contributing to inbound tourists into Uttarakhand, has a share of ~10 per cent as per recorded estimates. It has also been noticed as per recorded data, more than 1/3rd of the inbound tourists into Uttarakhand are females, which goes to show that it is a safe state for women,” Kurve said.
Kurve further added, “The state of Uttarakhand has a lot to offer including experiences and activities like river rafting in the Ganges, trekking in the hills, skiing through some of the picturesque slopes in Auli, enjoying a cable car ride and/or soaking in the views of the majestic Himalayas. We’re hosting the International Yoga Festival from 1st -7th March 2023 in Rishikesh. The state government is running a scheme under which the tour operators will be incentivized with Rs. 10,000 up to a maximum of Rs 5 lakhs for bringing in foreign tourists to the ‘Yoga’ festival”.
He also told, “The government has recently started a helicopter service to offer Himalaya Darshan from George Everest in Mussoorie, as well as proposals to launch Breakfast Tourism or Flying Picnic as part of another tourist activity. Using Flying Picnic, tourists can fly from Mussoorie to nearby tourist attractions where they can have breakfast in restaurants and also enjoy and capture the beautiful valleys and landscapes. The tourism department has made full preparation in this regard and is awaiting approval from the Ministry of Environment and Forests”.
Uttarakhand is targeting 70 million domestic tourists in the next couple of years from its current estimated 35+ million, and this calls for major infrastructure developments. Towards this end, the state is undergoing rapid development to improve facilities for the tourists, which includes among other things, redevelopment work at pilgrimage sites, opening up of homestays, adding hotel rooms, improving roads and highways, setting up of new airports and etc. The state is seeking investors from Gujarat to come and partake in this growth process by partnering in these development projects.
The roadshow will also be held in Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat cities.
Kurve underplayed the Joshimath subsidence and said the state government has taken all measures to address the issue.
