Rs 2K cr loss for HP’s tourism sector in July-Aug

Shimla: The tourism sector in Himachal Pradesh suffered losses of about Rs 2,000 crore in July and August, owing to which hoteliers in the state have started offering attractive packages to get back on track. The tourism industry in the hill state, which was in the revival process after Covid-19, received another blow as the monsoon wreaked havoc, leading to low tourist footfall. This sector, which contributes over Rs 14,000 crore annually to Himachal Pradesh’s GDP, lost around Rs 2,000 crore during July and August as heavy rains damaged road infrastructure -- the lifeline of the hill state -- and also cast a shadow on the already restricted air and rail connectivity, officials of the tourism department said.

“The tourism industry has suffered heavy losses and the only silver lining was an influx of devotees in six Shakti Peeths in Una, Bilaspur and Kangra districts of the state,” Amit Kashyap, managing director of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC), told PTI on Sunday.

About 8.24 lakh pilgrims visited Chintpurni, Sri Naina Devi, Jawalaji, Brajeshwari, Sri Baglamukhi and Chamunda Devi shrines during the Navratri from August 17 to 25, according to police data. The pre-monsoon season, however, witnessed a surge in tourist arrival and a maximum of 1.06 crore tourists visited Himachal Pradesh during the first six months of 2023 as compared to 86.4 lakh in the corresponding period in 2022, but the monsoon fury played the spoilsport, Kashyap added.

Meanwhile, Shimla Hotels and Tourism Stakeholders Association president M K Seth said the roads to Shimla are opened and the tourism industry is offering attractive packages with 40 to 50 per cent discounts.

“We can only hope that the public holiday in New Delhi from September 8 to 10 in view of the scheduled G20 Summit could break the ice as few inquiries have poured in,” he added. Seth said the situation is not as bad as portrayed in the news and on the flip side, hotel rates are discounted and traffic is less than usual. “We expect things will improve in October,” he added.