Palampur: Himachal Pradesh Agriculture University gives NOC for transfer of 100 acre land for setting up tourism village

Lalit Mohan

Dharamsala, July 14

CSK Himachal Pradesh Agriculture University, Palampur, has given a no objection certificate (NOC) to the state government for the transfer of its 100 acres to the Tourism Department for setting up a tourism village.

To come up with ADB funding

• The Tourism Department with the help of Asian Development Bank (ADB) has proposed to set up the tourism village.
• The project is at a conceptual stage, says RS Bali, Chairman, HPTDC
• The project is part of CM Sukhvinder Sukhu’s vision to make Kangra tourism capital of the state
• Internationally-recognised agencies will be hired for giving shape to the concept of the tourism village
• Once the concept is finalised, the project will be brought up with the help of ADB funds

The DC, Kangra, had written to the university administration in January for an NOC for the transfer of land of the institution to the Tourism Department. Initially, many BJP leaders and even many officials of the university administration had opposed the decision. Sources said that the university administration has now given the NOC for the transfer of land to the Tourism Department. This will pave the way for the establishment of a tourism village in Palampur as proposed by the state Tourism Department.

The Tourism Department with the help of Asian Development Bank (ADB) had proposed to set up the tourism village. Chairman of the HPTDC, RS Bali, said that the project, which was at the conceptual stage, was part of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu’s vision to make Kangra tourism capital of the state. “We will hire internationally recognised agencies to give shape to the tourism village project. Once the concept is finalised, the project will be brought up with the help of the ADB funding. The idea is to bring up facilities to attract national and international tourists to the Kangra region,” he added.

Minister for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Chander Kumar said that the agriculture university had a lot of surplus land, which was not being put to use. The government decided to spare the surplus land for setting up a tourism village. “It will help promote tourism in Kangra district and generate employment for the local youth,” he added.

Though the government has proposed a tourism village, many experts have criticised the project. They say that enough infrastructure for tourism has been created by private parties in the state. “The government should promote Himachal as a tourist destination rather than creating more infrastructure,” he added.

The experts said that tourist states such as Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan had spent a lot of funds to promote tourism. “In Himachal, the Tourism Department has no funds to promote tourism. In the past few years, Himachal has not even participated in the tourism fair organised in India and South East Asia to promote itself as a tourist destination,” they argued.

“The infrastructure already created in the state with the help of ADB funding is lying defunct. The convention centre brought up in the Bhagsunag area of Dharamsala, tourist huts built in the Nagrota Surian area and tent accommodation on the banks of the Pong Dam Lake are some of the ADB-funded tourism projects in Kangra that are lying unused despite public investment worth crores of rupees. These projects have proved sheer waste of public funds,” experts said.