SHIMLA - With an impressive influx of 72 lakh tourists in May this year, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, announced that the State Government is actively considering the formulation of a new Tourism Policy aiming to increase tourist footfalls to three to five crore in the next five years.
The policy aims to enhance visitor experiences by promoting lesser-known destinations within the state. The Chief Minister chaired a meeting of the Tourism Department today to review ongoing tourism projects and discuss strategies for the future.
But the major challenge that the government is facing is the management of trash and junk and traffic in the already chaotic tourist towns like Shimla, Manali, Dharamshala-Macloedganj, Atal Tunnel and Lahaul-Spiti and others. These towns have overreached their carrying capacity. 
Tourists do not go by government's offer, but their own sense of travelling, explain hospitality experts.
The tourists and locals are stuck in a gridlock everyday in Shimla city for hours. It takes two hours from Shoghi to Dhalli and cross Kufri in day time hours.
Yet the hoteliers claim their occupancy is low even during the peak summer season these days- a claim that the expert reject outrightly.
There is something amiss- State tourism department has no "foolproof mechanism to register the exact occupancy in hotels in the city and other tourist towns".
The figures on tourist arrivals are either extrapolated from the past trends and depend on the "data dished to the tourism department by the hoteliers as per their whims and fancies", comment a hospitality expert at HP University Shimla.
However, Chief Minister Sukhu said the government seeks to increase tourist arrivals from three crore to five crore within the next five years.
To accurately assess tourist influx and ensure proper planning, Chief Minister Sukhu instructed the Tourism Department to establish a mechanism for data collection.
CM did not reveal any specific plans for improving infrastructure and providing basic amenities to facilitate a seamless visitor experience in touristy towns, but he felt the need for the same.
Moreover, he stressed the need for effective marketing strategies and rationalization of staff in the tourism department to enhance the overall quality of services offered to tourists.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister reviewed several projects aimed at developing Kangra district as a tourism hub.
He directed the department to prepare a concept paper. The proposed projects include the establishment of a roller skating rink in Sakoh, a golf course in Paragpur, a high-end resort in Menjha, a tourism village in Narghota, and the construction of an Aero City in Kangra.
Additionally, the government plans to create a theme-based satellite village in Naura Khad, located in the Nagrota Bagwan assembly segment of Kangra district represented by Raghubir Bali, chairperson of the Tourism Development Board .
In line with efforts to improve air connectivity and attract more tourists, the State Government is actively working on expanding the Kangra airport.
Moreover, plans are underway for the construction of a greenfield airport in Nagchala, Mandi district, and the development of new heliports across the state.
In the first phase, nine heliports are being constructed, including Jaskot in Hamirpur district, Rakkar and Palampur in Kangra district, Sultanpur in Chamba district, Manali in Kullu district, Jispa, Sissu, and Rangrik in Lahaul-Spiti district, and Sharbo in Kinnaur district.
The construction of the remaining seven heliports is scheduled for the second phase.
Present at the meeting were Principal Advisor to Chief Minister (IT & Innovations) and Principal Advisor to Chief Minister (Media), Naresh Chauhan, OSD to Chief Minister, Gopal Sharma, Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Bharat Khera, Principal Secretary Tourism, Devesh Kumar, Secretary Language Arts And Culture, Rakesh Kanwar, Director of the Tourism Department, Amit Kashyap, and other officials
