Shadow looms on ‘Little Lhasa’ tourism in Dharamsala

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, June 21

Once buzzing with activity, McLeodganj, the tourist hotspot now wears a deserted look. Despite relaxation in curfew and permission to keep shops open till 8 pm, about 20 per cent of them are open. These are mostly grocery and clothing shops.

Owners of restaurants and eatery shops are not ready to open despite being allowed to function with 60 per cent capacity. They say business in McLeodganj is dependent on tourism and they cannot afford to open till tourists start coming.

The hill station is also known as ‘Little Lhasa’ as offices of the Tibetan government-in-exile and the Dalai Lama temple are located here. This temple is also closed these days.

Akshay Runchal, who runs a hotel in McLeodganj, says, “Hoteliers have accepted the fact that there will be no tourist in the region for the next six months. However, the real concern among hoteliers is how will they bring back tourists once the lockdown is over.”

He rues the tourism industry has been suffering for the past two years. Last year, during the peak tourism season, more than half of the hotels in region lost their power connections. This year, the peak season is gone due to the Covid outbreak, he says.

Sanjeev Gandhi, general secretary of the Smart City Hotel Association of Dharamsala, says the government has constituted a task force taking hoteliers on board to devise a strategy for re-starting tourism in the region.

Some experts feel that domestic tourists might want to visit the region after the lockdown is over. However, hoteliers also fear that if a tourist turns out to be Covid-positive, their properties will get sealed. Nobody is willing to take that risk, he said.