Leh (Ladakh): Ladakh, the world famous
trans-Himalayan land of myriad culture which houses age-old
monasteries is all set to become a spiritual tourism
destination with the Centre sanctioning a multi-crore project.
"Apart from being a foreigners' paradise and an ideal
place for trekkers, Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir would now come
up as a spiritual tourism destination," Minister of Tourism
and Culture Nawag Rigzin Jora said.
The Centre has recently sanctioned a Rs 25-crore project
for Ladakh.
"Here Buddhism is our USP. Under the project, Buddhist
culture, heritage, way of life and landscapes would be
promoted and infrastructure developed for starting spiritual
tourism in the region," Jora said.
Ladakh has always attracted foreigners who have
outnumbered the domestic tourists. As many as 78,573 tourists
including 41,000 foreigners visited Ladakh in 2009.
Thrust will also be on promoting adventure tourism like
water rafting, trekking and mountaineering, the minister said.
"Tourism is the life-line of Ladakh," he said, adding
"for this we hope that 104 virgin peaks in restricted areas
would be opened for the mountaineers and trekkers from across
the world".
Ladakh does not invite advisories from the foreign
countries and since it is militancy-free it attracts tourists
from all over the world, he said.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, January 10, 2010, 19:07