The form of 'Eco Tourism' places the highest value on culture and natural
heritage. This strategy seeks to protect that heritage and culture which is
the foundation of the travel industry in India. The tourist travels abroad
or at home in search of pleasure, leisure, adventure, recreation at
historical sites, wildlife parks, beaches, towns and villages.
The Himachal eco-system provides the ideal habitat for a huge variety of
animal and bird species. They create travel and eco tour experiences that
are fun and exciting, then go beyond the ordinary to incorporate elements
that promote cross-cultural understanding, encourage environmental
sustainability, and fulfill long-held personal dreams.
Formidable Mountain Ranges
Landlocked behind formidable mountain barriers in the western Himalayas,
sheltered from the rain-bearing monsoon winds, the remote and desolate
district of Lahaul-Spiti in Himachal is renowned not only for some of the
wild, untamed and enchanting mountain scapes but also for its unique
Buddhist culture.
Covering a total area of over 12,000-sq-kms, Lahaul-Spiti is the largest
district of Himachal Pradesh. It shares a common border with Tibet in the
east. A lofty offshoot of the great Himalayan range in the southeast
separates it from Kinnaur. In the north, the Baralacha range separates it
from the cold desert of Ladakh, while the Chamba and Kullu district lie to
the west respectively.
Historic Cultural Heritage
Today the district is studded with numerous Buddhist temples and
monasteries including Labarang, Gondhala, Dalung, Keylong, Guru-Ganthal,
Darcha, Markula in Lahul and Dhankar, Mud, Lidang, Rangrik, Ki (also spelt
as Kye), Losar and Tabo in Spiti. A millennium old Tabo is one of the area's
most revered monasteries. Often called the "Ajanta of the Himalaya"
because of its breathtaking murals and stucco images, tabo's sanctity in
trans-himalayan Buddhism is next only to Tibet's tholing gompa.
Evolution
Changes have occurred in dress patterns, food habits; traditional
occupations like sheep rearing and even in the religious life. Although
change is inevitable and no community wishes to preserve itself as a museum
of backwardness, it is the rapid pace of change and a lack of understanding
of the nature of change, which a society is unable to control, or direct
that touches a cord of concern. The development of tourism accelerates this
process of change and rapidly pushes traditional societies into the global
economy totally ill-equipped.
Promoting Tourism
By planning and promoting a healthy, sustainable, tourism industry in this
cold desert district, the government will have fulfilled its share of
responsibility but in the end, it may not be the number of tourists but
their sensitivity towards the local culture and environment that will
determine the complexion of tourism and the future of this unique heritage.
