From snow leopard sighting to adventure, Uttarakhand is becoming a tourist hotspot.

A plan has been made to start Snow Leopard tourism on an experimental basis in Gangotri National Park located in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. Under this, the high Himalayan areas will be opened for tourists in a controlled manner during winter. The aim of this initiative is to promote tourism along with wildlife conservation. Through Snow Leopard Tour, local homestay operators, guides, porters and people involved in adventure activities will get new employment opportunities. This model will become an example of balancing nature conservation and responsible tourism on the lines of Ladakh.

The Chief Minister has given instructions to develop Saryu Corridor in Bageshwar and to develop the origin of Saryu River as a religious-spiritual center on the lines of Gangotri. Also, special emphasis has been laid on the production and promotion of local products like trout fish, kiwi and red rice. These efforts will boost agriculture and fisheries based livelihoods along with tourism. This will strengthen the local economy and give a new identity to Bageshwar.

Under the winter tourism scheme, adventure events like skiing, trekking, paragliding and rappelling will be organized in Auli, Khalia Top and Bednidhar. Along with this, events like Himalayan Car Rally and Heli-skiing will help put Uttarakhand on the international adventure tourism map. These efforts will boost tourism in the state and the economy will also improve.

The state government is planning to organize a grand yoga festival of international level, in which government, private and social organizations will participate. Festivals will be organized in every district under the International Yoga Festival in Rishikesh, grand aarti in various Prayags including Devprayag and One District-One Festival. Along with this, winter tourism will be widely promoted through digital and print media campaigns, road shows and live broadcasts, which will further strengthen the cultural identity of Uttarakhand.

Winter carnivals will be organized in Mussoorie, Nainital and Uttarkashi, which will give tourists a unique experience of culture and adventure. In these, along with Bollywood, local artists will present cultural programs. Apart from this, there are also plans to organize various types of events, which will promote tourism.