Amid novel coronavirus threat and lockdown plunging the hospitality sector into losses which may take months to recover, homestay owners in many parts of the state have turned to agriculture and horticulture to make up for their losses.
Owner of Himalayan Abode, Ajay Bhatt, a homestay in Joshimath town in Chamoli district said that he has incurred losses of over Rs 15 lakh since the lockdown was imposed and with no prospect of the tourism industry getting back on track anytime soon, he is working on his apple orchard as well as agriculture land which he had abandoned for years.
“All the bookings at my homestay have been cancelled till August. The lockdown has caused significant losses for the entire hospitality sector and therefore with no prospect of things being normal anytime soon, I have started working on my apple orchard. Though we owned it but I would rarely visit the area which is barely a few kilometres away from my home but now not only I but almost all the people in the area have shifted their focus on the orchards,” he said.
Malika Virdi, director of Himalayan Arc which identifies itself as community-run enterprise of 18 homestays in Sarmoli, a village in Munsyari block of Pithoragarh district, said that agriculture and allied activities are helping the village survive the brunt of the lockdown. “All bookings for the next several months have been cancelled. Tourism used to bring significant revenues for the village but because of the lockdown that has come to a complete halt. Most of us have agricultural land and we are now focussing more on that so that we are able to bear our losses,” Virdi said.
According to state government figures, there are over 2,100 homestays in Uttarakhand. These homestays, spread across the Himalayan state, are a major source of income for families in some of the remotest locations while also sustaining the local economy. The government had recently set a target of developing around 5,000 such homestays but the pandemic and resultant lockdown have made it almost impossible to achieve the target.
The misfortune however has also presented many homestay owners with opportunities. They say that they can now diversify the business and make agriculture, apple farming, animal rearing and local crafts an attraction for tourists. “It is necessary to diversify. Tourism is a fragile industry and in the past few years we have witnessed that. First, the financial crisis of 2008 brought the industry to a halt and then there were the 2013 floods and now this pandemic. Therefore, it is necessary that we use the opportunity to develop agricultural practices as well,” Virdi said.
Bhatt on the other hand said that they are now planning to use the agriculture as well as animal rearing activities to attract more tourists once the lockdown is lifted. “The entire concept of homestays is to give tourists an experience of life in the hills. Therefore, the local craft as well as farming practices and animal rearing can be an attraction for the tourists who have never experienced these things,” he said.Source :TOI
