Tour operators happy with bumper tourism season this winter in Auli

Winter tourism that had come to a standstill after the 2023 land subsidence in Joshimath, Uttarakhand is getting back on track with tourist arrivals picking up this season, tourism operators said on Saturday.

Tourists started coming here from mid-December after the first major snowfall was received in Auli on December 12, Ajay Bhatt, who runs a homestay in Jyotirmath, told PTI.

“Winter tourism business of Auli and Jyotirmath, which was hit hard after the land subsidence in Jyotirmath (erstwhile Joshimath), was considerably better this year. Snowfall was recorded from Jyotirmath to Auli and Gorson Bugyal. Snow is still frozen in Gorson,” he said.

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CLand subsidence in Jyotirmath in 2023 had also adversely affected ropeway connectivity between Jyotirmath and Auli, with cracks in one of the pillars of the ropeway station.

The ropeway service remains suspended since then due to safety reasons.

“We have long been demanding that the ropeway service should be restarted but our demand has not been fulfilled yet,” Bhatt said.

“Resumption of ropeway service between Jyotirmath and Auli will further boost tourist traffic during winter as snow blocks the road connecting the two places during the period making the movement of vehicles on the route difficult,” he said.

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Bhatt said if the government makes heli-skiing in Auli and the proposed ropeway from Auli to Gorson a reality, winter sports could be held for a larger period, bringing more tourists due to it.

Heliskiing is where a helicopter is used to transport skiers to remote areas, allowing them to ski down pristine, often untouched slopes.

(Edited by : Jerome Anthony)