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In lake town Nainital, either walk or take expensive cabs for commuting

Looking for alternate Char Dham routes to adjust increase in tourist numbers: Maharaj

Pithoragarh's Darma valley thriving with homestay tourism for last two months

Uttarakhand to tap hot springs for tourism

Uttarakhand tourism industry will suffer Rs 12K cr loss: Survey

In lake town Nainital, either walk or take expensive cabs for commuting

NAINITAL:Except if you possess a vehicle or a bike, you will be left helpless before taxis for neighborhood drive in nainital .The base passage charges by these private vehicles is between Rs.150-200,but realizing they are the main choice in the lake town,the driver regularly expand the rate.

Manually-drawn rickshaws ply only on the mall road and as for the rest of the town,the plan od introduce e-rickshaws is yet to be execute.

Locals say even though buses to Dehradun, Delhi and various other districts in Uttarakhand such as Haridwar and Pithoragarh are available from the government bus stop, there is no local transport.

“We get buses to other states and districts including Dehradun, Pithoragarh and even Champawat but inside the town, we do not have any transport system,”said Manoj Joshi, a resident of Nainital.

Even the foothill town of Haldwani has auto rickshaws and cycle rickshaws but in Nainital, these rickshaws ply only on the Mall Road. “Even though the fixed fare for local commute is Rs 150-200,taxis rarely go by it and charge exorbitant prices.People who do not own vehicles get fleeced,”said Alok Sah, another Nainital resident Nainital.

Even the foothill town of Haldwani has auto rickshaws and cycle rickshaws but in Nainital, these rickshaws ply only on the Mall Road. “Even though the fixed fare for local commute is Rs 150-200, taxis rarely go by it and charge exorbitant prices. People who do not own vehicles get fleeced,” said Alok Sah, another Nainital resident. Nainital, which has a population of around 40,000, gets an average of 4,000 vehicles daily once the tourist season starts. The peak season is between May 1 and June 30 with the town seeing a footfall of around a million tourists every year.
The traffic flow in summer affects local people every year.

The traffic flow in summer affects local people every year. “It has been nearly 20 years now. We still do not have a master plan for the town and face the same problem every year. People are trapped in their own homes due to heavy traffic on the roads. Apart from taxis, local transport is non-existent,” said Sunil Bora, a resident.

In 2016, the transport department of Kumaon division had invited applications to grant permits to 1,625 e-rickshaws. The decision was brought about by protesting e-rickshaw drivers, who contended that the move would generate employment and provide a cheaper transport option to locals.

At the point when gotten some information about the arrangement to present e-rickshaws, V K Suman, region justice of Nainital, stated, "The designs for e-richshaws are in the pipeline. We are additionally directing an investigation about what should be possible about Nainital's inner transport circumstance.”

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Looking for alternate Char Dham routes to adjust increase in tourist numbers: Maharaj

DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand the travel industry serve Satpal Maharaj, during the state gathering session on Tuesday, said that the state government is searching for backup ways to go, augmenting of trek course, and investigating potential outcomes of utilizing ropeways on Char Dham course.

Highlighting the surge in the footfall of the Char Dham pilgrims in the state, Maharaj said, "After PM Modi's visit to Kedarnath and Badrinath, people are eager to visit these shrines. The cave where the PM meditated is also in high demand. Thus, we are looking for alternate ways to provide better facilities to the pilgrims." Notably, Uttarakhand saw a ootfall of 23.09 lakh Char Dham pilgrims till June 23 and the state is likely to witness a far higher number of devote than last year which saw 27.81 lakh pilgrims.

TOI had earlier reported that more than 7 lakh pilgrims visited Kedarnath temple in the first 45 days since the portalsof the Char Dham Yatra were opened this year. Notably, this is the highest number recorded since the flood disaster of 2013 which claimed several lives.

On the issue of introducing ropeways on the Char Dham routeMaharaj said, "We have contacted ropeway firms but they are concerned as to what they will do in the remaining six months when the yatrais not on."

Maharaj also opined that Vikasnagar and Ramnagar can become the possible routes for pilgrims for the holy yatra .Use of alternate routes by pilgrims will reduce burden on Haridwar, he said.

On being asked by Independent MLA from Dhanaulti Pritam Singh Panwar if there is any proposal to develop the routes of Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Hemkund Sahib on lines of Vaishno Devi, Maharaj denied any such plans saying, Vaishno Devi is an all-year pilgrimage but it is just a six-month yatra for Char Dham in Uttarakhand. Thus, the situations and requirements of the two are different. Also, the trust for Vaishno Devi and the committees for the Char Dham function differently.

In the interim, Congress legislator from Kedarnath, Manoj Rawat, focused on the requirement for a superior foundation saying, "The pioneers, this year, are confronting extraordinary trouble because of absence of courses of action and this doesn't convey a decent message for development of the travel industry in the state."To which Maharaj reacted saying, "We are advancing homestays, visitor house and lodging developments in the state. In the interim, private inns are likewise being opened up to suit the travelers.

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Pithoragarh's Darma valley thriving with homestay tourism for last two months

Situated on the Indo-China verge on the trekking course of Panchachuli Glacier, the pleasant Darma valley in the Pithoragarh area of Uttarakhand has been humming with sightseers throughout the previous two months. The homestay project setup in the Darma valley is a success story with large number of tourists flocking at the valley to experience the rural tourism. The guests stay with locals at their houses and enjoy authentic cuisine, learn about their lifestyle and culture

With the initiative started by Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN), the concept of homestay is gaining popularity amidst the locals in the valley. About 125 families in the valley are providing homestay facilities to the tourists at four villages namely; Dantu, Dugtu, Baling and Nagling. KMVN has been critical in giving preparing just as guaranteeing legitimate sanitation offices to the visitors.

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Uttarakhand to tap hot springs for tourism

DEHRADUN:Wellbeing the travel industry is set to make advances into Uttarakhand which has up to this point been famous as a religious and experience the travel industry center point. Five geothermal hot springs in Uttarakhand will now be developed into wellness tourism destinations, complete with high-end spa facilities and yoga and meditation retreats.

While India is home to over 350 hot springs, which are formed by geothermally heated groundwater that rises from the Earth's crust, Uttarakhand harbours 62 of them. The state tourism department is now focusing on developing five of these geothermal hot springs into wellness tourism destinations. These include Madkot in Pithoragarh on the banks of Gori Ganga river, Gaurikund in Rudraprayag on the way to Kedarnath, one hot spring in Badrinath, Rishikund on the way to Gangotri and Suryakund in Yamunotri. .

With a budget of Rs 400 crore each, the destinations are expected to be ready in three years.The sites will be complemented with a spa complex, golf course, yoga and meditation centre, dance and aerobatics complex and an amphitheatre. RK Joshi, director of infrastructure of Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) told TOI, The Himalayan state is ideally poised to exploit geothermal hot springs, which is one of the many gifts of God, to augment revenue. .

These destinations will offer spa facilities such as hot water massages, face packs, steam bath, and nature-based products. UTDB will be assisted by New Zealand Geo Thermal Association, Geo Thermal Institute of University of Auckland and Geological Survey of India (GSI) in executing this project. Worldwide hot springs spa, one of the quickest developing section of the travel industry, is evaluated to be a USD 50 billion industry around the world. It is as of now ruled by Japan and China.

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Uttarakhand tourism industry will suffer Rs 12K cr loss: Survey

"Uttarakhand was required to produce Rs 25,000 crore from the travel industry in 2013-14. In spite of the fact that Rs 5,000-6,000 crore have been created from the initial three months alone, the state is relied upon to acknowledge just Rs 5,000-6,000 in the coming a long time as significant the travel industry goals have been washed away by ongoing floods," SP Sharma, Chief-Economist" at the PHD Chamber said citing the review.

Tourism sector contributes 25 to 30 per cent of the state GDP, and therefore the state exchequer is likely to take a major hit, Sharma added.

The survey conducted by PHD Chamber-of-Commerce and Industry also estimates that around 11 per cent of Uttarakhand's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) for this fiscal has been ruined in terms of prospective tourism earnings on account of the flood in all its riverbeds.

"GSDP of Uttarakhand at factor cost at current prices stands at about Rs 1,07,548 crore as on March 31, 2013. However, 11 per cent of the GSDP has been washed away in terms of prospective tourism earnings due to floods that engulfed the state in mid of this month," Executive Director at PHDCCI Saurabh Sanyal said.

Moreover, the reconstruction of damaged tourist destinations are expected to put a burden on the state government, the survey said. More than 8000 individuals are as yet stranded in Uttarakhand with heavy rains hampering salvage activities yesterday. The loss of life in the state following the cataclysm remained at 822 with 142 bodies being found, incorporating 127 in Kedarnath.

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