Villagers threaten to disrupt pre-world cup paragliding event at Bir Billing over SADA inclusion

Residents of the Billing area have threatened to disrupt the pre-world cup paragliding event scheduled for November at Bir Billing. Today, villagers from the areas surrounding the Billing take-off point blocked the road to Billing.

The protest by the villagers led to the disruption of the paragliding activities, which were set to resume today after being banned during the monsoon months. Due to the roadblock, paragliding pilots were unable to reach the Billing take-off site.

The villagers have been protesting for the past fortnight against the inclusion of their area under the Special Area Development Authority (SADA), a measure intended to regulate construction in Bir Billing, an internationally renowned paragliding site. Bir Billing, ranked among the top ten paragliding destinations in the world, attracts thousands of domestic and international tourists annually.

Anjana Devi Pradhan from the village of Gunehar, one of the protesters, claimed that the authorities had not consulted the villagers before including their area under SADA. The villagers are frustrated that their land is subject to restrictive regulations without the provision of urban amenities. Pradhan argued that if the government intends to impose SADA on their area, it should first provide necessary facilities to the villagers.

Manoj Thakur, another protester, claimed that the notification regarding SADA was only made known to the villagers last month. He warned that if the government did not remove their area from SADA, the villagers would obstruct the world cup event.

Today, the villagers blocked traffic on the Billing road for 4 hours, from 9 am to 1 pm. The local Congress MLA from Baijnath, Kishori Lal, has also raised concerns about the inclusion of several Baijnath areas under SADA and the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act.

Agitation against the SADA and TCP Act has been growing in Baijnath and other parts of the Kangra district.

Government officials, speaking anonymously, indicated that the inclusion of these areas under SADA was ordered by the Himachal High Court. They mentioned that while the government is considering de-notifying some areas from the SADA and TCP Act, the process will take time.

The pre-world cup paragliding event at Bir Billing is organised by the tourism department. RS Bali, chairman of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC), assured that the concerns of the villagers would be addressed and the matter resolved. He emphasised that the event would boost tourism and benefit everyone in Bir Billing.