Satpal Maharaj, Minister of Tourism, Religion and Culture of Uttarakhand held a meeting with Prahlad Patel, Union Minister of Tourism & Culture, Govt of India and urged him to release funds for the ongoing tourism projects of Uttarakhand. Maharaj also presented a model of Chardham to Patel and thanked him for his continued support and gudiance for re-starting the Chardham Yatra in the state.
Expressing his gratitude, Maharaj said, “With the support of the center, Char Dham has been re-opened in Uttarakhand and the passengers from the Green Zone of the state are going there.”
He also requested to sanction funds for Swadesh Darshan and Prasad schemes. He informed Patel that 98 percent construction work of Eco and Adventure Destination in Tehri has already been completed under Swadesh Darshan Scheme and the remaining work of construction of Tehri parking will be completed by September 2020. Similarly, the work of Kumaon Heritage Circuit has been completed.
Maharaj also informed that the development of infrastructure facilities on Kedarnath road under the “Prasad Yojana” is going on at expected pace and it will be completed by October 2020. He also requested Patel to provide in principle approval on the ‘Mahabharata Circuit’ concept note. He said “Due to excessive rainfall and snowfall in the approved plan for Badrinath Dham, earlier progress could not be made, but currently the construction work on the project is being done at a rapid pace. Efforts are being made to complete it within the stipulated time.” Under the Prasad scheme, in-principle consent has been provided for the development of tourism facilities in Gangotri and Yamunotri.
Maharaj requested for early approval of the Government of India’s proposal for centralization of State Institute of Hotel Management (SIHM) in Uttarakhand and requested to release the remaining amount of Rs 1 crore out of the approved amount of Rs 4.75 crore for Food Craft Institute (FCI) based at Almora. So far, Rs 3.75 crore central assistance has been released under this head.
“While the Government of Uttarakhand remains committed on completing the development work in the state it is also ensuring that the guidelines of social distancing is maintained. The tourists have started coming to Uttarakhand and we want their jourbey to be smooth and easy. The construction work of Chardham 4 lane Road is going on at the rapid page and I am looking forward to its completion by the end of this rainy season,” Maharaj said.
