Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 13 Jul: Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan held a meeting with Forest Department officials at the Secretariat on Monday to promote eco-tourism activities in the state. During the meeting, the Chief Secretary first inquired about the progress made in compliance with the guidelines provided in the previous meeting. He stated that eco-tourism in Uttarakhand has immense potential. It needs to be integrated into the economy of the state and its citizens, so that forests can be connected with livelihood-related activities without harming nature.
The Chief Secretary directed the development of a trekking policy and its implementation immediately. He directed the department to present the trekking policy to the Cabinet by August. He also urged that new peaks in the state should be opened for trekking. The process for obtaining all necessary permissions and approvals should be initiated immediately. He directed the Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board to expedite the audit of identified peaks and submit a report promptly.
The Chief Secretary also directed that all bookings for mountaineering, trekking, tourist sites, and forest rest houses within the forest area be made online. He stated that this would prevent overbooking. He directed that nine sites being developed according to the Jabarkhet model be inaugurated by October.
The Chief Secretary also called for the establishment of formal nature guide training in the state. He stated that a permanent training centre and curriculum should be established for this purpose. He directed that certification courses be started soon, adding additional courses to the curriculum offered by the Government of India. He set a target of launching this programme during Wildlife Week in October.
The Chief Secretary directed that the Forest Department and the Forest Corporation be selected to operate the 31 identified forest rest houses and trekking sites, along with eco-camps and eco-hubs, and submit a plan within one month. He stated that the Forest Corporation needs to be strengthened. A proposal for this should be submitted to the government soon, so that further action can be initiated.
Present on the occasion were Forest Chief (HOF) Kapil Lal, Forest Secretary C Ravishankar, Dhiraj Garbyal, PCCF Neena Grewal, CCF Eco-Tourism PK Patro, and Additional Secretary Himanshu Khurana, along with other senior officials.
