Monday, 11 July 2022 | PNS | Bagenshwar
With its rich fauna and flora, the Askot wildlife sanctuary in Pithoragarh district can attract considerable tourism if basic facilities are developed in the region. The Pithoragarh forest division has started working on aspects which need to be focused upon to boost tourism in the area.
Spread over 600 square kilometres, the Askot wildlife sanctuary has rich flora and fauna apart from the natural beauty of the Himalayan region. The area of the wildlife sanctuary is spread over 12 forest blocks. Out of its total area, 290.914 square kilometres is reserved while 309.086 square kilometres is under Van Panchayats and unclassified civil forests. This wildlife sanctuary has about 2,600 species of plants, 250 species of birds and 37 species of mammals. The fauna here includes the snow leopard, Himalayan black bear, musk deer, Himalayan Tahr and blue sheep. Many species of butterflies and birds including Monal, Kalij pheasant and Cheer pheasant are also found here. There are also a number of lakes and waterfalls in the sanctuary area. A wealth of herbs with medicinal and other purposes is also found in the wildlife sanctuary area.
The Pithoragarh forest division and the district administration are starting preparations to increase tourism activities in the sanctuary. The construction of new trekking routes and repair of the old ones will also be undertaken for this purpose. Rare and endangered wildlife, butterflies and birds will be marked and publicised to attract tourists to the sanctuary.
A large number of tourists visit the Om Parvat, Adi Kailash, Parvati Kund located in the sanctuary. These tourists can be introduced to the untouched parts of the region.
The Pithoragarh divisional forest officer Koko Rose said that the species of flora, fauna and insects (butterflies) found in the wildlife sanctuary need to be marked and publicised. Trekking routes will also be developed to attract more tourists, he added.
