How to increase tourism in all the Hill stations of India ?

Today most of the hill stations are over crowded and all types of scarcities have emerged because of the unplanned growth of tourism. It is time to realize that tourism can play a positive role in the socio-economic development of the hill areas and hill towns of the Himalayan and Sub-Himalayan region. However, this is possible provided resource planning and management is done on scientific lines. Tourism planners must recognize that the models applicable to the plains would not fit the Himalayan terrain, nor would the experience of European and American mountain resorts be necessarily ideal in the Indian context.

A hilt environment presents ideal conditions for outdoor recreation, and tourism, if scientifically exploited. Tourism has been a major factor in the development process of many Alpine countries of Europe, and has been an agent of economic changes in many developing societies and island economies. It has also been observed that the most backward regions offer the most exotic resource base for tourism promotion. This holds true without any reservation for the Himalayan and Sub-Himalayan districts and regions of the country.

The Himalayan region offers some of the rarest ‘tourism’ products of nature with a wide ecological range and diversity. Apart from the many-splendored natural attractions and scenic beauty, the religious and socio-cultural dimensions of the tourist resource assume significance in the context of the hill districts lying in the lap of the lower Himalayas. Tribal life, ethnic culture, folk traditions, folklore and the innumerable religious shrines and sanctified spots seem to have grown with the splendor of nature as an organic whole.

Accelerated pace of development since the 1950s, gradual socialization and broad basing of tourism, educational awareness, and improved transport and infrastructure facilities, have all contributed to enormous proliferation as well as concentration of tourism related infrastructure in the popular hill-stations like Simla, Nainital, Mussoorie and Darjeeling, to name a few. In the absence of advance planning in a systematic manner, relentless influx of tourists to such centers has disturbed the demand and supply equilibrium. This has given rise to:

1. acute problem of landuse,
2. environmental pollution and degradation,
3. stress condition on infrastructure, transport and services, and
4. creating conflicting conditions.

All these have been described as negative impacts of tourism. Keeping in view of the distinctive physical, socio-economic and environmental setting within which hill-tourism as a popular mufti-faceted activity should be able to function optimally, following imperatives should guide tourism planning policies and programmes at macro and micro levels.

Planning Imperatives :

A scientific approach to tourism planning in the hill regions and the habitat, would require analytical studies relating to :

• likely impacts of development on the local environment and the hill habitat,
• valuating the tourist resources and infrastructure needs,
• establishing certain developmental thresholds consistent with the carrying capacity of the area and similar aspects.

The focus in all development programmes, particularly tourism related development, should be primarily on:

• the upgradation of the quality of life,
• safeguarding and maintaining their socio-cultural identity, and
• a general improvement in the town’s economy.

In fact tourism should be considered as a means to achieve this end rather than an end in itself. It is in this context that the concept of carrying capacity mentioned earlier acquires significance.

It is also imperative to arrive at a consensus on the policy of resource use in the Himalayas. Equally important is to identify and conserve the sensitive eco-systems in the higher Himalayas. This could be done by designating them as biosphere reserves with buffer and core zones. Tourism activity should thus be pursued with care and sensitivity in such zones.

Hill districts and regions are characterized by a dispersed settlement pattern. Here individual settlements and settlement clusters exhibit a low structural profile. The built form is characterized by traditional hill architectural styles and motifs, intimate social spaces, interplay of levels and gradients, and an ever-changing street scope. The design of the tourist complex, and facility clusters should be sensitively dealt with and should not result in a loud imposition of an alien, cosmopolitan massive looking built mass in a low profile traditional setting. Maintaining a design continuity according to the architectural heritage in tourism complex development should be a prime concern.

A dispersed locational pattern of tourist amenities and facilities in a hill-tourism region, linked to select nodes will enable development of a hierarchy of touirst village complexes. This can also be catered to, by non-conventional sources of energy, and thus economise on conventional energy consumption. Moreover, such a spatial pattern of tourist complexes will help diffuse tourism related activities and its concomitant benefits over a wider area, rather than concentrating at one or two spots in hill districts. This will avoid causing conditions of conflict and the threat to the hill environment.

Tourist village concept on a reduced scale, should also be incorporated while planning for additional tourist infrastructure in an existing resort. This shall enable planned dispersal of tourist related infrastructure wherever necessary.

Accessibility :

Accessibility to hill towns, resorts and places of tourist interest as well as movement within the area are important considerations in any kind of planning for hill tourism. The question of accessibility poses special problems due to;

1. difficult terrain,
2. inevitable restrictions to movement by automobiles,
3. heavy investments involved in road building and improvement,
4. imitations of railway to connect all the hill-resorts with the nearest railway centre in the plains, and
5. general difficulty in providing adequate terminal and parking facilities within the local area of tourist attraction.

Many a hill resorts have been losing tourists every year due to lack of proper accessibility and facility to move about. This has adversely affected the local economy. In the Himalayan foot-hills of northern, north-western and north- eastern India, there are over 60 major and minor tourist centers and hill resorts. Of these hardly nine are located on the railway. It is-apparent that accessibility factor in respect of hill resorts is heavily dependent on road transport. It is imperative that despite the heavy costs of road-building and improvement in hilly terrain, an integrated Road Development Programme should be formulated region-wise and implemented in suitable stages to promote tourism. Such a road network should comprise of a minimum two-lane black-topped carriageway with manoeuverable gradient and curvature limitations and an alignment merging with the landscape. There should be appropriate traffic signs and signals, pull-out bays and protective fencing wherever necessary. However, such tasks should not be undertaken if they have an adverse effect on ecology and environment.

Simultaneously at the national level, a programme should be conceived for extending as much as possible the air-network to all the major hill resorts, and for which necessary reservations of land must be kept in the development plans of the hill towns but again not at the cost of damage to environment.

At terminal points and destination areas, parking spaces should be provided for tourist cars, coaches and taxis in sufficient manner. Provision of such parking facility may pose serious problems of investments to overcome. It is, therefore, necessary that all such parking schemes should be conceived as self- financing in nature, by making use of the gradient for accommodating multi-level parking cum warehousing, godowns and general commercial spaces as part of urban development programme for the hill town.

However, other innovation for movement of tourists from one tourist spot to the other within a hill town is to introduce extensive ropeway network which could supplement the limited, motorable road network in meeting the specific local accessibility considerations alround. Such ropeways are quite common in hill resorts in western countries and a beginning has been made in India also, but in a very few cases. A road-cum- ropeway transportation network should, therefore, form an important element of any physical development programme for hill towns and hill resorts to improve accessibility.