In an effort to promote the centuries old fairs of Uttarakhand, the State Government was planning to link them with the tourism. The decision in this regard was taken recently by the State Cabinet.
The State of Uttarakhand boasts of more than 100 fairs which formed an integral part of the life of the people as they were the places of recreational, social and religious activities. Talking to The Pioneer, the Director Culture Beena Bhatt said that the Department of Culture would select some of the ancient and famous fairs and would allocate sufficient budget for their proper and planned organisation.
She said her department was working in tandem with the Tourism department which would put these fairs on their tourism calendar and do activities for promoting these fairs. Bhatt also listed Purnagiri fair of Tanakpur, Jaulibi and Thal fair of Pithoragarh, Gauchar fair, Chaiti fair of Kashipur, Uttaraini fair of Bageshwar, Nanada Devi Raj Jat fair of Chamoli, Jhanda fair of Dehradun, Magh Mela of Uttarkashi, Kunjapuri fair of Narendra Nagar and Surkanda Devi fair of Tehri as some of the fairs which could be selected and provided budget under the plan.
Bhatt said that care would be taken for proper portrayal of State’s unique cultural identity before the visitors. The artists and social groups of the State termed the Cabinet’s decision as a belated but very good initiative. The president of Garhwal Sabha Roshan Dhasmana welcomed the decision and said that linking tourism with these fairs would increase tourism potential and would help in showcasing the culture of the State. Famous folk singer Pritam Baratwan told The Pioneer that efforts should be made to depict real cultural identity of the State in these fairs and added fairs should be highlighted properly so that more and more tourists visit these ancient fairs.