Pushkar Singh Dhami: The ongoing efforts of the Pushkar Singh Dhami government to promote pilgrimage have started bearing fruit, more than 23 crore tourists have reached Uttarakhand in the last three years. This has supported the livelihood of home stays, hotels, dhaba operators, women self-help groups and transport traders.
Due to the efforts of the state government, tourism and pilgrimage is continuously increasing in Uttarakhand. According to the data of the Tourism Department, more than 23 crore tourists have reached Uttarakhand in the last three years. The special thing is that tourism in Uttarakhand has now become multidimensional, tourists are not limited to big cities and selected hill stations but are also reaching small remote tourist places. Along with this, participation of not only nationals but also foreign tourists in adventure activities like rafting, trekking, bungee jumping, mountaineering has increased. Due to this, the benefits of tourism are directly reaching lakhs of people of the state, this includes hotels, restaurants, homestay operators, transport traders, women self-help groups. At present, more than six thousand home stay operators in the state have emerged as direct beneficiaries of increased tourism activities.
Pilgrimage also on boom
Pilgrimage activities have also increased significantly in the state. So far this year, the number of pilgrims in Chardham Yatra alone has touched 50 lakh. This year, more than 4300 horse-mule operators provided their services on the Kedarnath-Yamunotri walking route. The state government is now also promoting winter travel. Due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Adi Kailash Yatra, tourism in the border areas of Pithoragarh has increased rapidly. Tourism is the economic base of Uttarakhand. Tourism- Local people directly benefit from pilgrimage. Therefore, the government is trying to continue tourism-pilgrimage activities throughout the year. Pilgrimage tourism in Uttarakhand has got a boost due to the visits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
