A MESSAGE FROM THE MOUNTAINS
01.11.2017
Alluring India mesmerizes a great deal of tourist from throughout the world. The Himalayas are a prime tourist attraction, especially for adventure seekers and nature lovers. Nowadays, plenty of trekking expeditions are organized in Himalayas and ample of youth participate in it, which on the contrary, is accidentally creating a huge impact on the life of the local tribes residing there. During a recent visit to Himachal Pradesh, me and my friend Vyshak had a brief conversation with few elderly locals of villages around Kasol. It acquainted us with the fact that they are unhappy with the newly increased tourist attraction. On the other hand, the younger generation, are immensely satisfied and have embraced this change, mainly due to the amount of income that is getting generated. Bit by bit all the teenagers of these villages are getting indulged into tourism related business like starting a café, a guest house or a general store, instead of pursuing farming. Almost, all the food that they consumed used to be cultivated in and around the region. But now because of this drastic shift in occupational choices, and also due to increase in tourists, the consumption of packaged food items has significantly increased. Transportation of these packaged food items is another major problem as there are no roads connecting these villages. The only way to reach up is by hiking over the narrow trails through the mountains.
Apart from all these issues, the one problem that concerns me the most is the huge amount of plastic waste getting generated because of tourism. Just imagine how would you feel when hiking amidst exceptionally beautiful woods, comprising of pine and deodar tress and then suddenly you come across a huge dump of plastic waste. Almost each and every water stream which went pass us was polluted with heaps of plastic waste. It was extremely regretting for us to see these sights.
I recall that after finishing our hike from Barsaini to Kheerganga we encountered a huge amount of temporary settlement established for overnight camping near Kheerganga hot water springs. It was very shocking to see the entire plain at Kheerganga which is even less than 2km2 densely packed up with tents and cottages. This sudden change in their lifestyle, exposed them to products packaged in plastic. Prior this they were reliant on the natural resources to make and consume biodegradable sustainable products. But now because of plastic, this ecological cycle is disrupted and due to no proper waste management system, the landscape is degenerated with plastic waste.
Isn’t it the duty of the tourist to keep these places clean and maintain the serenity of the place? We frequently met hikers on our way who did not hesitate for even a second before throwing plastic wrappers in a bush on the hiking trail. It does not take much time to tuck in the wrappers in your backpack and throw them when you find a dustbin. We were delighted to see couple of posters addressing about a clean-up trek (intended to pick up all the garbage on the way) organized from Barsaini to Kheerganaga. Unfortunately, we were late by a day and were unable to join the event.
Its highly fortunate to be part of a nation which possess beautiful natural wonders like The Himalayas and one should take pride in protecting and maintaining them. The scenic villages of The Himalayas have so much wisdom to offer. Travelers visiting this place should grasp this opportunity of understanding the culture and lifestyle of the locals instead of just enjoying the mystic smoke with them. Tourism is a rapidly growing industry, mainly because of the internet which has made travelling so easy nowadays. A nation should always try to mint on its tourism but not by keeping its natural resources at stake.
These heritage and culture rich villages established in the stunning valleys of Himalayas are continuously dilapidating and losing their essence. They are indeed striving for their cultural existence, and I think that a bit of effort from our side to maintain the beauty of these village can really make a huge difference.
Anand Shah 
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