Himachal using folklore to popularise village tourism
Himachal Pradesh has thrown open 12 of its villages, famous for local legends and art forms, with the launch of "Har Gaon ki Kahani" (Story of Each Village), a compilation of folk lore about these places.
The hill state has registered arrival of about 13.20 million tourists this year till June, including 12.80 million domestic and 0.4 million foreigners.
Himachal Pradesh Tourism Director Arun Sharma said that the sector was witnessing exponential growth.
Tourism was contributing 8% to state GDP providing employment avenues to 36,000 people.
He said the department has launched "Har Gaon Ki Kahani" and was offering special package to tourists to expand the tourists circuits rather than keep them restricted to populated urban centers and tourist destinations like Manali, Shimla, Dalhousie and Dharamshala.
The earmarked villages were being developed into "Tourism villages". Infrastructure, including provision of basic amenities such as improved pathways and water conservation were being initiated under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGA) scheme, Sharma said.
He said experts will be engaged to make valid documentation of village historical events, heritage, stories of Gods and Goddesses, prevalent religious beliefs, interesting anecdotes, local customs and rituals followed on the occasion of marriage and festivals.
Besides offering the tourists a slice of rural life, the scheme aims to provide self-employment to the people of a particular area to improve their economic condition.
For the implementation of the scheme, a committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner in each district. The department is working in coordination with rural development, Panchayati Raj, PWD and Forest departments.
One of the Gram Panchayats earmarked for the scheme was Salasi in Bilaspur district, famous for "Rumani Kund", a natural water body that never dries up.
