Uttarakhand tourism to organise first ever snow leopard tours in the state
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New Delhi, January 12: Giving a boost to tourism in order to attract the tourist, Uttarakhand Tourism is going to organise snow leopard tours n the lines of Himachal Pradesh and Ladak. These tours will be organised in Harsil, Uttarkashi district.
Rajiv Bhartari, head of the first force (Hoff) said, "As a pilot project tour will be organized in Uttarkashi district of the state in February 2021 and depending on the response it will be extended to other regions of the state where the elusive cat is found."
The first batch of tourists will be chosen on a first-come, first-serve basis. The tourism body took to Twitter to make the announcement.
Sustainable tourism🎒 for wildlife conservation🐆
— MoEF&CC (@moefcc) January 11, 2021
Thru #SECUREHimalaya project, @theGEF,@moefcc,@Uttkhand_Forest & @UNDP_India are partnering @UTDBofficial to organize first-ever winter #SnowLeopard🐯 tours🥾 in Uttarakhand & promote nature-based livelihoods in the Himalaya ⛰️ pic.twitter.com/77ZAn669eU
The tours are part of the SECURE Himalaya Project — Securing livelihoods, conservation, sustainable use, and restoration of high range Himalayan ecosystems. It is an “endangered” animal as listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
The programme is reportedly led by the Indian government and United Nations Development Programme(UNDP)The main aim of the tour is to develop ecotourism and spread awareness about the conservation of the species. At present, according to estimates, Uttarakhand has around 86 snow leopards. Their natural habitat is usually in the high alpine and Himalayan areas which are nearly 2,000 m above sea level.
In India, snow leopards inhabit a large part of the western Himalayas, from Jammu and Kashmir to Himachal Pradesh, and the eastern Himalayas including Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.