The Tourism department is organising MTB Heal with Wheels, a hot air balloon festival, and a Majestic Uttarakhand photo exhibition to commemorate the State’s foundation day. Addressing the media here on Saturday, the Tourism secretary Dilip Jawalkar spoke in detail about the events planned to mark the occasion.
He said, “The Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) is organising MTB Heal with Wheels cycle rally. Chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat will flag off the cycle rally from CM residence on Sunday, the eve of the foundation day. This rally will start from CM residence and will reach George Everest via Kimari, Basagath Marg. About 260 cyclists have registered for the rally, which includes 247 men and 13 women. The top three winners will be presented with a cash prize of Rs 10,000, Rs 7,500 and Rs 5,000 respectively.”
Discussing the major guidelines for the event he said, “Keeping Covid guidelines in consideration, cyclists will proceed in groups of 10. The police department will also monitor road safety and traffic to ensure the smooth conduct of the rally. For the safety and convenience of the participants, medical teams including ambulances and necessary medicines have also been arranged.”
Speaking about the hot air balloon festival he said, “The Hot Air Balloon Festival is also being organised by the team so that all the visitors can enjoy the scenic view of Himalaya from a certain height. UTDB is also spending nearly Rs 27 crore for the beautification of George Everest Estate to develop the site as a tourist spot.” He further informed that the UTDB will also organise a Majestic Uttarakhand photo exhibition at the Uttara Museum of Contemporary Art, MDDA Complex, Clock Tower. This exhibition will be held for three days, which will be from November 8 to 10. The motive behind this is to promote the talent of the local photographers capturing the scenic beauty of Uttrakhand. The photo exhibition will feature photographs taken by Anoop Shah, Avinash Joshi, Bhumesh Bharti, Threesh Kapoor and Tribhuvan Chauhan.
Highlighting the work of the department he said that under the trekking traction center home stay scheme we have started work in the first phase. The work of beautification is under process at the selected villages of Uttarkashi and Tehri villages. Five beneficiaries have been selected by the district magistrate under the scheme. The scheme will provide a golden opportunity for self-employment to unemployed people especially those who have returned from different places after Covid. Keeping in view the increasing number of tourists coming for the purpose of trekking in the state, this decision has been taken with the objective of strengthening the rural and local economy of the state. People from many villages located on hundreds of trekking routes in the state will be able to benefit from this scheme. Under this scheme, Rs 60,000 will be granted for the construction of new rooms and Rs 25,000 will be granted for the renovation of existing rooms.
Emphasising the aspect of winter tourism he said, “As winters are around the corner, we will plan winter sports events in the famous locations of the state, along with Yoga event and MTB rallies to promote tourism.”
Tourism director Prashant Kumar Arya, deputy director Yogendra Kumar Gangwar and others were also present during the Press conference.
Sunday, 08 November 2020 | PNS | Dehradun
