This is one of the best seasons to visit Ladakh region but sudden tourist rush has started leading to the environmental issues and water shortage. This report was recently published in Scroll, Print & IndiaTimes.
In one of the recent interviews, Dr. Sheikh Ghulam Rasool the chairman of J&K RTI Movement and an environmentalist said that the current situation is alarming in Ladakh. There are more number of tourists in Ladakh than the intake capacity. Because of this, Ladakh is facing environmental issues and water scarcity.
“During my experience, I witnessed that the locals were using 21 litres of water daily while tourists were using 107 litres for bathing. So, one can imagine what this is leading to. Since the homestay culture has also come up, the demand for the water is high,” he said.
“Tourists are also using plastic bottles and wrappers. The entry of more tourist vehicles to the region is causing pollution,” he said adding, “It is posing a threat to the wildlife habitation as well as snow leopards.”
He has suggest a ban on mass tourism in Ladakh.
One of the major environmental issue is caused by water bottle pollution. Tourists use one-time use water bottles and throw then that massively increase the pollution. There are approximately 2.5-3 million water bottles that are thrown away during the peak season of tourism.
Government and the local homestay owners are always requesting tourists to use WATER ATMs.
Water ATMs are installed in most of the tourist spots but people hardly use it. There is a need for everyone start carrying their own water bottles and re-fill it from the water points aka water ATMs.
According to the official data released on web, the tourist rush this summer in Ladakh surpassed the previous records. Approximately 2.5 lakh people travelled to Ladakh in June and July. This is higher than the Ladakh population.
Ladakh is indeed one of the most beautiful places on Earth offering breathtaking beautiful landscapes, crystal blue skies, mountain passes, monasteries and more. It is natural that people are attracted towards this place because of its untouched beauty. But with the increase in number of tourists, this untouched beauty is losing its charm.
One of the main reasons of increased in environmental issues is also the increased number of personal vehicles. Ladakh is one of the most preferred places for road trips and bike rallies. Bike can carry 2 at most while car capacity depends on its type. People in order to fulfil their passion, often forget that they need to be responsible towards the environment while travelling. Some bikes cause way more pollution than cars. It is also needed that govt. limit the number of vehicles entering this zone.
Indeed Ladakh is top most hill stations to visit in India and tops the travel bucket-list of many. And we agree that people should visit this place in order to witness the beauty of this region. Not just this, but it also boosts the tourism and helps local communities to sustain.
But there is a need to change the way we travel. There is a need to travel more responsibly.
Reports have also stated that Atal Tunnel, the modern marvel has added contributed to this chao. Initially, when there was no tunnel, people had to travel via Rohtang Pass which is 3000 mts above the sea level. During the winters and rainy season, this pass was shut due to snow and landslides. This is world’s longest highway tunnel that connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti valley. Because of this tunnel, tourists can travel in all weathers while Rohtang pass mostly remains closed between November and April. Before the inauguration of this tunnel, Ladakh region used to remain disconnected with the rest of the part due to the climatic conditions mainly, heavy snowfall and avalanches for almost six months.
Now let’s talk numbers. In a recent research, the data was revealed that before the opening of Rohtang pass over 4.5 lakh vehicles passed through the tunnel between Jan 2018 and Oct 2020. Over 17 lakh vehicles passed through the tunnel afterwards till August 2022. This year alone 7.62 lakh vehicles passed till August ending, it said. Experts consider this route as the main cause for the tourist rush and vehicular pollution.
We at Responsible Yatri aim to bring you such reports and stories with an intention that you will consider bringing a change in the way you travel and be more responsible towards travelling. World is indeed beautiful and everyone has a right to see it, enjoy it and soak in its beauty and serenity. But do not forget that not just enjoying, but we are also responsible to take care of it so that we don’t lose our natural resources because Climate Change is Real and it’s high time now, we need to pull up our socks!
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