Winter tourism in Uttarakhand - see snow-capped Himalayas from the air

#Kedarnath #uttarakhand #Himalayas Uttarakhand is keen to promote winter tourism and the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN) has introduced a new chopper service from the state capital to Kedarnath. It offers tourists a breathtaking view of snow-capped Himalayas from the air. The fare is Rs 18,000 per person for the 135-minute flight.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 24 January 2016.

Identified as 'Kedar Darshan', it is an aerial trip to the Kedar valley. A team of five tourists can avail of these rides every Saturday and Sunday from 9 am onward in the day from Sahastradhara helipad in Dehradun. The route is - for first 45 minutes, they will fly over snow-covered Himalayan peaks, which offer breathtakingly scintillating view. On reaching Kedarnath, they will halt for 45 minutes and then return to the helipad in another 45 minutes.
The allotted time of 45 minutes is sufficient for the tourists to soak in the scenic beauty. They can click photographs and enjoy a stroll of the area in all-terrain vehicles.
GMVN is offering a 50% subsidy in the fares to attract tourists. The Kedar Darshan is a precursor to the winter festival which is scheduled to be held in Kedar valley.

Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Uttarakhand plans to develop areas around Kedarnath for winter tourism

Harish Rawat, the chief minister of Uttarakhand, has laid the foundation stone of reconstruction projects worth nearly Rs 115 crore to organize a festival in January to attack tourists to the scenic spot. He plans to develop the area as the paradise of winter tourism.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 15 October 2015.

He has also indicated that he would contact his counterparts all over the country requesting them to come to Uttarakhand and set up lodging facilities in the name of their respective states to encourage more tourists from across the country to visit the famed Himalayan shrine at Amarnath.
One of the projects is a helipad for MI-26 helicopters at a cost of over Rs 23 crore. Then there were other tourism related projects of over Rs 91 crore.
The region had witnessed mass devastation in the flash floods of 2013 and the state government was working on a three-tiered safety plan for the shrine. These include channelisation of rivers flowing behind it, raising security walls in Kedarpuri, securing the temple from inundation and strengthening the communication system in the entire region.
Projects that have been inaugurated by the chief minister include IT and Wi-Fi projects implemented by District Disaster Management Authority to strengthen the communication system in Kedar valley, installation of LED digital display boards for weather related information and 25 cottages equipped with modern facilities for devotees who would be visiting Kedarnath.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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